Nothing Wrong with Different
by Princess Basketcase
Summary: Set during the Deathly Hallows. It's a relief for everyone to finally get some rest at Shell Cottage, but even amidst dark times, some people find comfort in each other. Dean & Luna.
1. Little Instances

A/N: Wow it has seriously been years since I've last written a fanfic! I've decided to give this one a go, and hopefully this will actually get finished. *fingers crossed* Enjoy the though odd, but yet curiously cute pairing! There are some spoilers from the Deathly Hallows, FYI.

**Nothing Wrong with Different**

**Chapter 1 – Little Instances**

_This chapter jumps around a bit before actually settling into the actual time frame where the plot takes place._

"Is it true you can perform a patronus charm?" asked Luna at the meeting. Harry looked nervous and distraught over the recent events of Umbridge taking over the school.

"Yes…" replied Hermione. As she went on, everyone in the room was curious and a little bit scared. They all showed up not knowing what they had gotten themselves into. Before they knew it, people began signing up.

"Thanks Loony," said Ron as Luna signed her name on the piece of parchment. Hermione gave him a hard nudge, "I mean Luna."

"I look forward to the lessons," she smiled dreamily, walking towards the door. As she was about to walk outside, she realized her scarf was missing. She quickly turned around and found a tall figure standing in front of her. "Sorry, I seem to have misplaced my scarf. Has anyone seen it?" She now turned towards the three behind the table, who now began looking around the room.

"Excuse me, Luna," Dean Thomas' arm lightly brushed Luna's long locks as he made his way towards the door.

"Sorry Luna," said Hermione, "I don't see it anywhere."

* * *

"EXPELLIARMUS!" cried Neville. He had been struggling during their practice sessions, but swore he wouldn't give up.

Dean shot back with the same spell. "You're getting better Neville, come on give me just one good shot."

The Room of Requirement was buzzing with spells being cried out and students being flung against walls. Dumbledore's Army had been making progress.

"I'm trying…" Neville took a deep breath before giving the disarming spell another go. Before he even flicked his wand, Dean had been hit with a stunning spell that was shot across the room.

"I'm so sorry!" Luna came running towards Dean, who was slowly getting up and still disoriented.

Dean looked at Luna. "Good shot." He took Luna's outstretched hand and got up from the ground. Luna apologized again and then she was off practicing with Ginny.

"Come on Neville!" Dean cheered on his classmate, shrugging off the fact that he was stunned.

* * *

"Dean we can't go in there, people will see us!" giggled Ginny from the far end of the corridor. She was holding onto Dean's arm as they laughed, walking down the nearly deserted hallway.

Dean smiled at her. "I'm sure there's an empty classroom around here, come on."

Luna sat on a secluded bench next to a gargoyle statue, reading the Quibbler with her usual eccentric spectacles. She couldn't hear any voices when she read. She was so concentrated on the latest article her father published on his theory of Merpeople. Her father always wrote the most interesting works. "Hi Luna."

She snapped back into the empty hallway, no longer staring at the words and the enchanted pictures of Merpeople. "Oh hello Ginny." She looked up and saw Ginny grinning and also caught a glimpse of Dean, who was smiling as well, but at the beautiful Weasley girl clinging to his arm. Luna watched them disappear into the end of the hallway and buried her eyes into the Quibbler once more.

* * *

"Just forget about it mate," said Seamus as he attempted to climb a tree in the quad.

Dean sat at the tree's roots, picking grass off the ground. "I just don't get it, you try to be nice to girls and they suddenly don't want you to be nice to them anymore."

Seamus sat himself on one of the branches, dusting off his robes. "Girls are just hard work they are, you can't expect them to be satisfied, no matter what you do. You know what I think? I think you can forget about Weasley because there are more grown girls out there that want us."

"Or want Harry," Dean gave up pulling grass patches and leaned his back against the trunk. "It was pretty obvious."

"Good point."

"Whatever." Dean looked across the quad. Students were hanging around, either casting hexes at each other or chatting the afternoon away. Among the midst of the socializing, he spotted Luna examining the crevices of the wall with what looked like a magnifying glass.

"Girls just don't know better, mate."

"Yeah…" he wondered what Luna was doing, but didn't dwell on it and instead leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

* * *

They landed on a grassy patch and could hear the sound of waves crashing in a distance. Luna, Dean, and Mr. Ollivander had disapparated from the Malfoy's with the help of Dobby.

"I must get Harry Potter," Dobby left with a loud crack, before Luna could thank the house elf.

"Is everyone alright?" yelled a voice. It was Bill running towards them with Fleur not far behind him with some coats.

"Mr. Ollivander is going to need some help," said Luna, helping the wandmaker up to his feet. Fleur nodded as she put one of Bill's coats over him.

"Where iz everybody else?" asked Fleur.

"They should be on their way back," said Dean. "Please take him inside, we'll wait for Harry."

It was a tragic arrival of the trio, for their hero for that night was killed by a knife. Dobby had saved all their lives and if it weren't for him, Harry would have been at the hands of Lord Voldemort.

"Poor Dobby," Luna looked at Harry who was trying to wake up the elf in his arms. Dean patted Luna on the back before joining Harry to dig Dobby's grave. After Dobby's funeral, Harry, Ron, and Hermione immediately went to speak with Griphook and Mr. Ollivander. Meanwhile, Fleur put out food for Dean and Luna to eat. She insisted they eat as much as they like before going off to prepare everyone's sleeping quarters.

"I feel like I haven't eaten a home-cooked meal in ages," said Dean taking a big bite of porkchop."

Luna smiled, "Daddy lets me fish for Plimpies for his homemade soup. It's quite delicious."

Dean stopped chewing and looked at her for a moment. She dreamily ate her food and though bruised from captivity, she seemed cheery. He held back questioning what sounded like a disgusting dish and continued eating his food. He felt safe for the first time in what felt like years. He had been running for so long now that he forgot what it felt like to be in a real shelter. It was relieving.

After their meals, they only saw the trio briefly after they had a talk with Mr. Ollivander. After resting a little bit in the sitting room, Fleur came downstairs.

"I prepared zee beds for all of you. I also set aside extra clothes for you," said Fleur as she wiped her forehead. "Luna, I hope my old clothes fit you. Zey are petite. I hope you don't mind zat 'ermione will be sharing the room with you."

"Thank you Fleur," Luna smiled as she headed upstairs.

Fleur smiled. "You better get up before you fall asleep! Zare are clothes for you too."

Dean opened his eyes. He didn't realize he had been drifting off to sleep on the armchair he sat on. "Right, thank you."

He made his way upstairs, finding that he would have to be rooming with Griphook. It didn't bother him that much considering he had been hiding with him for the past several months. The goblin had already went to sleep so he tried to make as little noise as possible. He picked up the pajamas set on the bed and made his way out into the bathroom. It felt so good to finally splash clean water over himself. A nice hot shower allowed him to relax for even just a little bit. All of this was better than camping out in the woods.

He put on his pajamas and right when he reached for his shirt, he felt a sharp pain on his elbow. He stood in front of the mirror and found a fairly thin twig pierced into his skin. It was nasty splinter, but he couldn't figure out why he hadn't noticed it in the first place. It must have stuck him when they landed on the grass when they had disapparated. He picked at the splinter, only to find that he might have made it worse when the blood was more visible beneath the skin.

"Oh I'm sorry," said a dreamy voice. The door had swung open by Luna, who was holding a toothbrush. Dean, a little startled and embarrassed without a shirt on, gave her a nervous look. "Are you okay?"

Dean started picking at the splinter again, "Yeah, it's nothing. Just a little splinter." Suddenly she was standing next to him, looking at his elbow. He twitched a little to find that she not only invaded his privacy, but they now were both in the bathroom.

"Tsk tsk tsk," she said looking at his elbow closely. She put down her toothbrush and lifted his elbow so she could talk a better look. Her fingers felt soft on his skin, but it felt so foreign, and weird. She blew some air onto the splinter gently, "does it hurt?"

"A little bit."

"Hold still," Luna wiggled the twig a little bit which felt like a needle on Dean's elbow. He let out a little groan as it pierced his skin. She then slowly tugged at the twig until finally, it withdrew from his skin.

"OUCH!"

Luna grabbed a cotton ball from a jar by the sink and pressed it onto Dean's bleeding elbow, "there you go. I'm no Madam Pompfrey, but I used to get splinters all the time down by the creek behind my house. Daddy always had to do this for me."

Dean looked at her, "thanks Luna."

"Not a problem," she half smiled and took her toothbrush, "I guess this bathroom's taken."

She left and closed the door behind her. Dean looked at himself on the mirror, trying to recount what had just happened. It was bizarre to say the least. "Of course it was taken."

He shook his head and finally put on his shirt. He brushed his teeth, still thinking about the weirdness of the situation. After rinsing his mouth he looked at the mirror again, "the bathroom was obviously taken." He chuckled and went to bed.


	2. Time Alone

**Chapter 2 – Time Alone**

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had kept to themselves for the next few days. Luna and Hermione had shared a room, but after breakfast she never went back until bedtime. It was obvious that they were planning something huge, but Luna never gave it much thought. Bill and Fleur made it their priority to make sure Mr. Ollivander was comfortable at Shell Cottage, so Dean and Luna, left out of whatever plan was going on, made sure they helped out when they could. It was a sunny afternoon by the shore. Luna had just finished helping Fleur with laundry, and Dean had gathered enough wood for the fireplace.

The cool breeze was soothing. Dean was sitting against a rock, looking towards the glistening sea. He eventually became lost in his thoughts. How is everyone doing at Hogwarts? Is Seamus alright? Considering he was a half-blood, he hoped his best friend was doing okay. He was thankful; thankful for being alive considering the recent events of being caught by Snatchers and then brought to the Malfoy's. So much had happened since he started running, but he isn't running anymore. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Dean?" Luna was standing in the water, her pants and sleeves rolled up. She was observing little tadpoles swimming. She had bent over to take a closer look that her waist-length, blonde hair had dipped into the water.

"Hmm?" he said with his eyes closed.

Luna didn't bother checking to see if she had his full attention, "Tadpoles are interesting creatures, it's funny how at birth they can swim, but when they grow up to be frogs, it's like they forget they were once able to tread water."

Dean didn't answer. Luna had always gone off in her thoughts, observing little things and telling him about it. He knew she was a bit odd, but for some reason he didn't let it bother him. He would listen, but sometimes she would trail off, forgetting they were having a conversation. He sat there with his eyes still closed.

"I'd like to be a tadpole," her voice was now more audible.

Dean opened his eyes to find that she had sat next to him, now looking over the sea. He studied her features. Her grayish-blue eyes lit up against the sunlight. Her fair skin, so light but so angelic, he wondered how it might feel to touch it. "Why is that?"

"I'd like to know how to swim."

Dean broke his gaze. "What?"

Luna looked at him with a smile on her face. "I want to know how to swim. You can tell I like hanging around the shallow end, but to actually float on water? That would be serene."

"Thought you'd know. You seem to like water."

"I do, but I want to go further from the shore."

"Well," Dean got up and dusted sand off his pants. He felt the temperature of the water with his foot. He then took off shirt and threw it on the ground. "The water's perfect, let's go."

Luna looked at him with curiosity. She took off her jacket and set it on one of the rocks. He couldn't read the look on her face. She almost always wore the same smile, but this was different. She didn't take her eyes off his, even as she walked to his side. She looked at the water, and then took off the thin pink t-shirt she was wearing.

Dean couldn't help but study her even more; her shoulders, her collar-bone, and then her breasts, covered by a purple bra, he admired the curvature it gave her. He didn't let it get to him, after all why is he noticing all of this all of a sudden? He remembered how physical he was with Ginny, but he never looked at someone this way. He shook it off, hoping that she wouldn't notice that he couldn't keep his eyes off her.

"Well," said Luna bringing Dean back to reality. "Let's see what I can do." She took off her pants, exposing a matching purple boy short. She slowly walked into the water, until the water reached her waist.

"You've got to be kidding me," muttered Dean to himself. _Well I can't be an idiot and go in with my pants now can I?_ He took off his pants and was now left with his dark blue boxers. He walked towards Luna, trying not to get distracted that she was half-naked. "Take my hand, and we'll go towards the deeper end, slowly."

She held his left hand as they both walked further from the shore. Her hands were soft, and his calloused. She held his hand tightly and as the water began reaching her neck, she let out a little gasp. "I think this is as far as I go walking."

"Okay, I'm going to hold on to you and lay you flat against the water," said Dean. "You're going to stretch your arms forward and once I start guiding you, you're gonna start kicking your feet. Think of it as swimming with training wheels."

"Training wheels?" asked Luna.

"Sorry," he remembered it was more of a Muggle thing to ride bikes. "Scratch that, I'll just hold on to you till you get the hang of it."

"Okay."

"So lean forward like you're going to lie down," he held her up at her stomach and thighs. "Ready? I'm going to move you around now, we'll take it slow." He moved her around, making sure she stayed afloat. She slowly kicked her legs, making little splashes.

"Am I doing it right?"

"Perfect, now I'm going to keep guiding you for a little bit more, then when I let you go, you're going to start circling your arms like a windmill."

"Like a windmill."

He smiled hearing how calm her voice was. To his surprise she wasn't panicking and was really relaxed. He took her around again, "Okay, I'm going to let you go now. Remember, don't stop kicking your feet and circle your arms at the same time. Do it at your own speed."

"Right."

Dean took his hands off her and gave her a slight push. He watched her kick her feet and awkwardly circle her arms, but she stayed afloat. He laughed at this sight, because it was probably the weirdest thing teaching a witch how to swim and though it looked very unorthodox, she was not drowning. She finally stopped and turned towards Dean, trying to stay upright and afloat. "How was that? I'm trying to stay above the ground right now," she said as she slowly waved her arms up and down.

Dean smiled and dove underwater. He saw her legs slowly kicking, trying to keep her head above the water. He heard her call his name. He swam towards her and grabbed her waist from the back.

"Oh!"

"Scared you?"

"No, not scared. Just a little bit surprised."

He laughed. "Want to see what's underwater?" She smiled and nodded. "Hold your breath!" He grabbed her hand as they swam underwater. They saw the little tadpoles swimming, along with other little fishes, crisscrossing their way through seaweed.

"Oh my!" Luna said ecstatically as they reached the surface.

"Not so bad huh?"

Luna smiled and noticed that Dean was still holding her hand. She looked into his kind, dark brown eyes. "Will you teach me how to float?"

Dean nodded and quickly grabbed her legs and held her up as she stared at the clear, blue sky. He watched her as she took a deep breath, her breasts rising from her wet bra. His eyes wandered over to her small thighs. She had a small frame, but she had a little bit of meat on her thighs that gave her a subtle curve.

"This is nice," she broke his stare.

"Should I let go?"

Luna nodded. She spread her arms and stayed there, floating on the water. She smiled as she realized that she stayed there, the water moving her wherever it pleased. Then Dean suddenly held her up again.

"Thought you were going to sink."

"No."

"No?" Dean asked.

Luna shook her head, "No you didn't, you just wanted to touch me again." Dean suddenly felt his ears getting hot. He let out a little smile, looking up at the sky. "You've been staring at my body."

"Sorry."

"I don't mind."

"No?"

"Not at all, I'm quite flattered, though I don't show it," she said dreamily. She pushed herself off his hands and faced him as she waved her arms, floating upright. "I find you a bit odd actually."

"I'm odd?" he smiled slowly swimming towards her as she backed away. "I could say the same about you can't I? But I won't."

"It wouldn't be something new," she looked into his eyes again.

He didn't break the stare, "but I would be, wouldn't I?" She stopped as he drew closer. He didn't know what was making him do this. Somewhere in his mind he thought he shouldn't, but it felt right.

"No," she backed away from him again.

"But you're curious aren't you?" he questioned her. He knew he was right. She had a straight look on her face, the look you would have if someone called your bluff. "I know you are, and I am too. Don't you ever think about how it would feel?"

He drew closer again, this time grabbing her waist. She stared at him intently. For a quick moment he studied her again, her expression, the way her damp hair fell over her temples; he liked what he saw and gave in. Their moist lips met, and though they were in the water he could feel his insides on fire. He could feel his boxers tightening from all the dirty thoughts racing in his head. He was getting harder as he heard her give a little moan. The feeling couldn't register in his head. It was pure euphoria. Her lips were though thin, but soft. He couldn't help it and his tongue begged her lips for entry. She pulled away.

They were both breathing very hard and stared at each other. He saw a flush of pink on her cheeks, something he's never seen on her beautiful skin before. She didn't say a word, but began treading towards the shore.

"Brought some towels for you!" Fleur called from a distance. She smiled and began to walk towards the cottage.

Dean had to catch his breath. He didn't know what he was feeling. He has had thoughts for days, but never dreamed of ever taking action. He slowly made his way back to his clothes and a clean towel. Luna had already dried herself off and now was putting her clothes back on. It was as if they both were in deep thought as they changed, talking to themselves.

"Did that fill your curiosity?" said Luna as she towel-dried her hair.

He looked at her, hoping to catch her eyes. He waited, and then her eyes finally met his, "Yeah, it did."

"Hmm," she said now grabbing her shoes, "me too."

He watched her walk away, replaying what had just happened, over and over again. _Her lips. Her skin. Her body._ The truth was that it didn't fill his curiosity; it left him wanting more. He couldn't think straight for the rest of the day. During dinner he would steal a couple of glances at her but she would carry on with her conversations with the others normally, as if nothing had happened. Fleur had already noticed the way he'd been acting, but why has Luna seemed to have ignored him? He didn't understand it but it only made him even hungrier.

"Good night, Dean," she passed by him upstairs and went to her room.

He watched her closed the door, forgetting to say anything back. He stared at the door, biting his lip.


	3. Done Wondering

A/N: Does anyone notice that a lot of these fictional scenarios are placed into what actually happened in Deathly Hallows? Anyways, thought I'd throw that out there. Here's a long one.

**Chapter 3 – Done Wondering**

It seemed like she was avoiding him. He wanted to understand why she acted like nothing had happened. There were moments during meals, when she would bury herself in a book, or when he'd watch her at the cliff; he wanted to ask, to confront her. _Why am I so hung up about this?_ There were times when she'd start telling him things, but before he could bring up the subject, she would smile and walk away, humming.

Then he began to notice. He'd feel his ears getting hot when he stood by her, his palms would moisten, and he felt as if someone was choking him so words couldn't come out the way he wanted them to. A whole day went by not talking to Luna like he wanted. He wanted to take his mind off of it. After dinner he grabbed a short pencil from the desk by the fireplace and a piece of parchment. He began to sketch. He didn't know what he wanted to draw, he just felt the need to do it. The pencil etched the parchment, creating lines and shading. It eventually came to him; he wanted to draw a dog, sitting on the edge of a cliff. It felt good to focus his mind on something else. Every line he drew took him further away from the thought of Luna. He felt at peace.

"Maybe a moon?" he said to himself. He touched up the scruffy-looking dog and the cliff it sat on and drew a circle and shaded it in. He added clouds and little lines to resemble stars. He continued shading.

"That's quite a drawing," Luna had leaned over the armchair he sat on, admiring the sketch he had just made. A little bit of her hair fell over Dean's shoulder, startling him.

Her hair smelled lovely. He was caught off guard and realized he had stopped sketching. "Thanks, thought I'd do something to get my mind off things."

"Hmm," she said still looking over his shoulder. "Maybe it could use something more at the bottom. Where is the cliff overlooking?"

"You're right," he noticed the empty space. "Land or water?"

"You know I like water," said Luna. Dean turned around to look at her. Before he could say another word she said, "Good night, Dean."

He watched her walk up the stairs, then turned back to his drawing. _Good night_. Not fully set on drawing water, he decided to sketch what looked like part of a lake, surrounded by a forest. He finished touching up lines and shading, then signed and dated on the bottom right corner of the parchment. Feeling accomplished and much more relaxed, he went upstairs to bed.

The next morning, everyone woke up to breakfast and to find Mr. Ollivander dressed and looking a lot healthier.

"Eet was such a pleasure to 'ave you here Mr. Ollivander," said Fleur as she poured orange juice into his cup.

"I cannot thank you both enough," he smiled as he ate his toast. "You have all been kind to take care of me."

"I'll escort Mr. Ollivander to Aunt Muriel's after breakfast, the rest of you will follow in a few days," said Bill eyeing Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

Once they finished their meal, they all said their goodbyes to the famous wandmaker. He patted Luna on the shoulder as he thanked her for bringing him comfort while imprisoned at the Malfoy's.

"Luna," said Fleur. "Would you mind helping me clean up the kitchen and dining room?"

"Of course," Luna smiled and walked with Fleur back into the kitchen.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had already gone back into the small room with Griphook, something that looked very routine to Dean, but didn't think much of it. He went back in his room and lay on his bed. He stared at the ceiling, thinking about how bored he was. He wished he could have done something. He could take a broom and fly around, but he knew that this was no time for a runaway to be flying over the countryside with Snatchers on the lookout. He didn't want to find himself thinking about Luna again, especially because she made it very clear how she felt about their kiss.

He made his way back downstairs to the sitting room, looking for his drawing that he had finished the night before. He looked under the copies of the Daily Prophet, Quibbler, and more random magazines but couldn't find it.

"Fleur, have you seen my drawing on the coffee table?" asked Dean. "I could've sworn I left it here before I went to bed."

Fleur looked at him confused, "I didn't see anything when I came downstairs this morning." She continued flicking her wand at the tablecloth, moving it to the laundry basket by the door.

"Odd," said Dean. He looked at Luna, who was humming while putting dishes away into the cabinets. He looked back at Fleur, who was now pushing the chairs in. "Oh well, did you need any help?"

"Well we are running a little low on zee driftwood, but you can do zat later," she sighed, looking upstairs. "Would you mind getting zee sheets off zee beds?"

Dean nodded, "Not a problem." Dean helped Fleur with chores all day. He didn't mind it too much, after all they have been very hospitable by giving them food and shelter. There have been times where when he'd be left alone with Luna in the sitting room, but no conversations were initiated. Luna hummed her way through sorting books and took no notice that he was also there. As the day progressed, the less he thought about what had happened. He thought that it really was just curiosity and that was it; a kiss, no more no less.

The weather that day was a bit gloomy. Dean noticed as he passed by Dobby's grave in the garden that the clouds looked a bit darker and the wind was getting colder. He walked back inside and found Fleur preparing dinner, "Should I get some of that driftwood?"

"Please!" She replied as she seasoned steaks. "You might want to hurry, no? Zee weather isn't looking too good, so don't go too far."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Dean as he put on his hoodie and walked out the door. Keeping his hands in his pockets, he stared at the gray clouds coming in. There was something nice about it, even if it looked a little gloomy. He walked towards the woods and began looking for wood. He wished he had his wand again; some of the chores he had been doing would have been done a lot quicker and with minimal labor. He found a few medium sized logs and set them aside. Soon he realized that doing some things on his own just felt good. There were no immediate worries, and for once he wasn't dwelling on anything. He whistled while he grabbed more logs then he heard a twig snap. He stopped. _No wand._ Slowly, he grabbed a good sized branch and quickly turned around.

"Luna!"

"I'm sorry," she was now picking up more logs and putting them into another pile. "Did I startle you?"

Dean sighed, "a bit."

"Fleur told me to go and help you since it looks like it might rain anytime soon."

"Hmm."

"I quite like the rain actually; I don't mind it at all. But of course not everyone is like me, so I thought it might make your search a little quicker to help you."

"Thanks," he said as he dropped another load into the pile. "I think I'm just about finished though."

"Oh, well it would save you another trip."

"Right."

Luna sat on a rock by some shrubs, "You seem indifferent, is there something wrong?"

"What makes you think that?"

"Well, we haven't been talking lately. Though lately would mean yesterday and earlier today, but it feels like something's wrong."

Dean stood against a tree, looking at Luna. Finally, when he wasn't thinking about what happened the other day, she brought it up. "Go on."

"I think that you think I'm acting like nothing happened."

"Are you?"

"Nothing did."

"If you call that nothing, I guess."

Luna's expression didn't change. She still looked at him with amusement, "Just come out and tell me what you're exactly thinking then."

He didn't budge. They both continued to stare at each other, waiting for another word to come out of their mouths. After a long pause, Dean cleared his throat. "Was that really nothing? I thought there was something there, and it felt good, at least to me."

"I like you, Dean," Luna blurted out, her expression still the same.

He raised an eyebrow, "well, I think I like you too."

"But you're too physical."

"Physical?"

Luna stood up and slowly walked towards him. "Where would any of this lead to? Snogging? I know that's something you enjoy doing. Then the other day you couldn't keep your hands off me in the water. Now if I'm not mistaken, I believe that says you're physical."

"Is that right?" he asked. "You've read me like a book and that's what you've come to?"

She nodded and suddenly the rain started to sprinkle. She took another step forward, now right in front of Dean, looking into his eyes. Lifting her right hand, she cupped his face, then slowly traced his jawline. Her mouth was slightly open as she brought her hand over his chest and over his heart. She took his right hand and placed it on his heart, "It feels like someone is banging on a door, doesn't it? Physical. Infatuation."

He froze. His heart was racing the moment her hand touched his face. He stood there as she made her way to her pile of wood. _Is that why she's been ignoring our kiss? She thinks I'M physical?_ Before she picked up the pile, he stood behind her.

"We should get back now, you wouldn't want to get a cold."

"Just because my heart was racing doesn't mean that I'm just physically attracted to you, which I'm happy to admit."

"Point taken."

They were both slowly getting drenched by the rain. "But just to show you," he lifted her jacket slightly and softly rubbed her lower back, making his way up to her waist. Her skin was so soft and warm. He then stood in front of her, looking into her eyes. He stared at her lips and drew closer, so close that his lips brushed against hers. She held in a gasp and noticing this, he traced her jawline with his lips and whispered into her ear, "I think your heart is doing the same thing." He took her right hand and placed it on her chest.

She stared at him as she took slow, deep breaths. She remained silent, feeling her heart race.

"But of course," he said plainly as he walked back towards the pile of wood, "I'm just physical, I'm completely incapable of an emotional connection. Because you know, you're just not physical right?"

She chuckled at his sarcasm. Without turning to look at him, she grabbed her pile and began walking. "Let's go, they might worry."

Dean took his pile and followed her. He was getting better reading her, and the most surprising thing was that he didn't feel that same hunger the day that they kissed. He felt relieved to get something off his chest and he believed he made a good point with her. Not to his surprise, she began to shrug the moment off and began talking about a horn from a Crumple-Horned Snorkack that her father kept in their house. It made him smile on the way back.

* * *

Two days after, Harry, Ron, and Hermione left Shell Cottage at dawn along with Griphook. They all were sad to find that they had left early without a proper goodbye.

"I'm sure we'll see them again soon," said Luna cheerfully at breakfast.

Bill pulled out a copy of the Daily Prophet before joining them for breakfast. "Looks like you two will have to wait till tomorrow to go to Aunt Muriel's, looks like snatchers have doubled their rounds today. We can't risk it."

"Not a problem," said Dean as he slathered some jelly over his toast.

"I'm sorry that we've been such a burden," Luna apologized.

Fleur shook her head, some of her blonde hairs fell out of her messy bun. "Eet is no problem, we're glad to 'ave you here instead of hiding out zare. Too dangerous to be running from zee snatchers!"

The day before, Luna had been sent a new wand from Mr. Ollivander. After breakfast, she went out into the yard again to practice some spells as Dean watched from a distance, sketching another drawing on a tree branch. He had to admit that he was quite jealous that Luna had gotten a wand again, it felt almost naked to be without one for so long. He had been feeling a lot better since their talk in the woods. He wasn't bothered when they were both left alone. She'd carry on telling Dean some random facts and of course, he listened without saying a word.

It was a little odd that he felt exhausted today. After dinner, he picked up a book from Bill's study but barely got through the first chapter. He went to the bathroom and got ready for bed. Tonight was his last night at Shell Cottage and he couldn't help but think of what I lied ahead. He thought about his family, hoping that they managed to keep safe from any Death Eaters. He stared into the mirror blankly, his thoughts whirling in his mind. After putting on his pajamas, he headed towards his room. Luna had just walked upstairs, her hair looking a little bit disheveled.

"Good night, Luna," he said for the first time since they got to the house. He continued walking towards the opposite end of the hallway to his room, waiting for an answer from her. It never came. He lay in bed, staring at the ceiling as his eyelids grew heavy. _Hope everyone at Hogwarts is okay. I can't imagine all the rubbish that everyone is being put through these days. Maybe I wouldn't be alive if I had gone. No, probably tortured and locked up with other half-bloods and muggle-borns…_

He drifted off to sleep. He dreamt of being in school again. Everyone was there, happy. He was in his dorm room again. Seamus, Harry, Ron, and Neville were up late laughing up a storm. Observing the room, he relaxed in his four-poster. It felt good to be back. Then someone knocked on the door.

"Who's that?" Ron wondered.

"Oi!" called Seamus. "Go check who it is, Dean."

"Bloody hell can't you see I'm resting?" he said lazily.

"Dean?" a voice called.

Seamus got up. "That's a girl's voice, that is!"

"Dean?"

"She's calling for you mate!" called Neville.

Dean opened his eyes. _It was just a dream._ "Dean?"

"What the," he looked towards the door. "Luna?"

She was wearing one of Fleur's pink pajamas and a blue robe over it. Through the darkness he was still able to see her long, golden hair. She sat on the bed and turned on the lamp switch.

"What are you doing here?"

"I can't sleep."

He looked at her suspiciously, "Something wrong?"

"I've been lying to you."

"Lying?"

"I haven't been totally honest."

Though the words sounded troubling, she spoke calmly, her eyes fixed on his.

"With what?" he asked now sitting up.

"I haven't been able to sleep, and you know not many things are able to bother me that much. Remember when I asked you if it filled your curiosity?"

Immediately realizing what she was referring to, he replied, "Yes."

"Did it really?"

"It didn't seem that way at first, but when I think about it. It did."

"Really?"

"Really," he said in a matter-of-fact kind of way.

"I don't think it did."

Dean had no response. He had been over this debate about their kiss. He finished arguing with himself over his impure thoughts that sprung from his curiosity. There were no thoughts left. But now, she was there in his room, sitting on his bed. What was he supposed to say?

Luna whispered, "The truth is, I've been _very_ curious."


	4. Testing the Waters

**Chapter 4 – Testing the Waters**

Dean didn't know what to think. It was inviting, yes, but he couldn't believe the words she spoke. She looked at him intently, waiting for an answer. He waited for her words to eventually sink in. He noticed how the one faint light from the lamp had lit up her eyes. _Her lips._ His eyes moved from her mouth to meet her gaze.

"Well what do you suggest then?"

"Can we try it again?"

He sensed the caution in her voice, "I suppose we could." She moved a little closer to him that only his feather pillow laid between them. She didn't move, but her eyes were fixed on his lips. There was something weird about this time. Dean felt a little nervous. He thought that maybe this wouldn't live up to their first kiss, especially because the first time it just happened. There was something weird about purposely giving their kiss another go. He inched closer to her, still staring into her eyes. Closing his, he softly pressed his lips on hers. It was like bolt of lightning surged through his body when their lips met. She kissed him slowly and much more passionately than the last.

His heart began to race again, eventually stopping him from kissing her, "well?"

Luna sat there, taking slow, deep breaths, "Again."

Dean wore a confused expression his face. _Did I do something wrong?_ This time, she threw the pillow aside and sat in front of him, tracing his hairline with her finger. She leaned in for a kiss, registering every bit of it into her head, and then she paused and looked at him, "I don't think this is what I was curious about."

"Hmm?"

She closed her eyes, brushing her lips on his, and then gently licking his upper lip. Dean didn't hesitate. He held her nape with his left hand, making sure he had control. He slowly let his tongue venture her mouth till it met hers. He felt himself getting hotter the longer they kissed. He gently tugged her hair as he tried his best to hold in a groan from the bottom of his throat. Euphoria took over again. His senses ran wild. Then they stopped again, breathing harder than the first time they kissed. She stood up, dropping her robe to the floor. There was a mischievous smile on her face as she pulled the blanket covering Dean over to the edge of the bed. He had been sleeping just with his boxers on.

She mounted him, making sure her ankles were locked on his lower back. She giggled as she felt his todger harden when she sat.

"How was that?" he asked, rubbing her lower back beneath her shirt.

"Brilliant," she smiled, slowly rocking her hips.

"Hmm," Dean glanced at her hips then at her face. "Right then." He kissed her again, using his left hand to switch off the lamp. There was something about the darkness and the secrecy that made his sex drive sky rocket. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tightening her grip as her hips continued to rock softly as she kissed him even harder. Dean held back a chuckle as he noticed how frisky she got, pushing herself more on him. He responded back by working his hands upward, caressing her thin waist. Curious to see her reaction, he used his index finger to trace over her bra, snapping the hook on the back, but still keeping it fastened.

"Dean.."

"Yes, Luna?" he asked, now planting kisses on her slender neck.

"Don't tease."

He chuckled. He began to slowly unbutton her shirt, exposing her petite but perky breasts underneath a turquoise bra. He admired every bit of it, making sure not to remove her shirt just yet. He took his right hand and traced it over her collarbone, following it with kisses. Then he softly brought his hand lower to trace her cleavage, making her hold back a squeal. His kisses made their way down to her breasts as his hands slowly massaged them. She allowed him to have his way as he pleased. She dropped her head back, eyes closed, softly moaning as he continued to touch her. He removed her shirt and with his left hand, he quickly snapped her bra's hook. While massaging her other breast, his tongue licked the nipple of the other, feeling it getting harder as his tongue played. Once he sucked it, she gasped at what it did to her body. Her hips rocked at a faster pace, feeling her underwear getting wet over his hardened tool.

"Do we need to go any further?" he whispered as he kissed her neck again.

"There's nothing wrong, right?"

"Not at all."

With her eyes half-closed she replied, "Then I don't see why not." He smiled as she quickly pulled his shirt over his head, revealing his muscular physique. His chest, arms, abs; they were all lined perfectly as if it was a painting. She traced over his cuts as she began to kiss him again, feeling his arms flex while he grabbed her bottom. He gently laid her onto the bed, purposely rubbing himself over her pelvis.

"You need to do me a favor though."

"What can you possibly need?"

"Well both of us need to be really quiet. I can hold my own, can you?" he asked, both of the looking at each other face to face.

"Oh I can, don't think you can."

He smirked, "well maybe you can surprise me." He lay on top of her, kissing her harder than before. His left hand wandered to her breasts, down her stomach, eventually pulling her pants down. He threw her pants to the floor, then planting kisses on her neck as his left hand rubbed her crotch. With this thumb, he began to tug at her underwear. She noticed this, soon kicking her knickers off when they got to her feet.

It was warm and wet. Feeling her moist flesh drove him mad. She used her free hand to rub his erection underneath his boxers. There were only small moans. They both knew that if they had gotten carried away Bill and Fleur would wake up to only ruin the moment. Finding her clit, Dean rubbed it in circular motions as she only got wetter. He wanted to _feel _her. One finger penetrated her, and soon another. _So warm_. She gripped the end of the bed, her body twitching with pleasure but still trying to restrain herself. He withdrew his fingers, then moved her body towards the end of the bed so her legs dangled freely. He pushed his fingers in her again, this time accompanying them with his tongue. He licked her clit, sucking it as he thrust his fingers.

"Oh Dean…"

"Shh…" He stood up, dropping his boxers to the floor. She licked her lips, staring at his massive erection. She admired his body, so masculine, so perfect. She pushed herself off the bed, taking his hand and having him lay where she once was. Her hands found their way to his shaft, stroking it up and down, gently massaging his sac. She then taunted him with her tongue, licking his head and gently sucking on it. He watched her pull her hair back and began to suck him, her head bobbing up and down. His manhood was far too big for her to please him completely, so she followed her mouth with strokes from her hand. Though it felt amazing, he held back releasing, for he had to save it for what was going to soon enough. To his surprise, she got on the bed, her bottom now faced towards him, still sucking him pleasurably. He didn't refuse. He licked her clit once again as she pleasured him. At times they had to pause to enjoy the satisfaction the other was giving. This was too much for Dean. He wanted to continue with their foreplay, but he wanted so much to be inside her.

By impulse, he spanked her right cheek and she agreed. She crawled to the center of the bed lying on a pillow. She saw the eagerness in his face. She knew he wanted it, and she wanted it too. He crawled on the bed slowly towards her, "you have to be quiet, remember?"

He laid a hand on her knee, "Of course." Seeing what he was doing, she opened her legs wide, exposing her pink, wet lips. He grabbed his manhood, gently stroking himself as he rubbed it on her clit. She let out a little moan, closing her eyes. He slowly penetrated her, inch by inch. He would push in a little bit, then pull out, only to go back in deeper and deeper. It was more than euphoria, it was ecstasy. He was surprised to find how wet she was and it only made the pushing smoother, slowly driving him over the edge. He held on to her shoulder as he picked up speed. He had found his rhythm. The feeling was too good to be true.

Luna could not get over this new discovery. There was pain at first, but she enjoyed it. She bit her lip as he continued to thrust inside of her, feeling him go in and out of her body. She wanted more. She pushed her hands toward the wall behind her, jerking her hips with his movement. Without a word, he understood. His movements got deeper and harder. Both his hands now held her hips, making sure she got every piece of him in her.

"Dean…"

He leaned towards her, kissing her neck, still keeping her legs elevated, and giving her everything he got.

"Oh.." she moaned a little louder now.

"Shh, they shouldn't hear us," he caressed her neck, looking her in the eye. He didn't break from her gaze and it only made him move faster.

"Dean…"

"Shh…

"Oh my god…right there…" she whispered as she laid her hands on his back, trying not to pierce his skin. She wanted to yell, to moan; there was no feeling like this. Nothing compared to this moment. All their curiosity led to this, the only thing left was finish.

"There?"

"Yes…" she moaned into his ear.

"Luna…" he growled into the pillow as his speed picked up faster than ever. She heard their skin slapping against each other, her body begging for him to release. Her moans were slowly getting louder, unable to control the feeling. Then she reached it. Pure orgasm overcame her, so euphoric that Dean had to cup his hand over her mouth, stifling the moans. The sounds drove him crazy. His heart was racing with every jerk her hips made, pulling him closer, and closer.

"Ughhh…" He growled once more, and quickly withdrew from Luna, spreading his fluid all over her stomach. They were both gasping for air, their hearts pumping from sharing an orgasm together. It was mutual. It was refreshing. _It felt so good._

He lay next to her, his eyes wide open, staring up at the ceiling. His blood was flowing and for a moment he felt like the room was spinning. He closed his eyes for a moment, then Luna said, "Wow."

"Wow indeed," he turned his head to look at her. Her face glowed in the darkness, her cheeks stained pink from their body heat. He studied her face once more, even in the semi-darkness. _Beautiful_.


	5. Leaving

A/N: Trying not to fluff this story out too much, but somehow it fluff finds its way back whenever I'm updating this. Oh well =P

**Chapter 5 – Leaving**

Luna woke the next morning in her bed hugging an extra pillow. She smiled reminiscing what had happened. She kept her eyes closed, thinking about his dark skin, his muscular body, and his kissable lips. It felt like a dream, but she knew it was real. Her memory was vivid and kept replaying in her head. She wondered how he felt waking up this morning. Did he enjoy everything as much as she did? She was a little insecure over the fact that he was the first boy she ever kissed, and to think that she let herself go last night was even more surprising. She never felt attracted to someone that way before. There was never really anyone at school that intrigued her, that made her question her feelings.

"Luna?" Fleur knocked on the door. "Breakfast iz ready!" She heard her knock on Dean's door as well, jumping off her bed, quickly grabbing her robe and slippers she was on her way downstairs. She wasn't sure why she wanted to avoid him, especially because there was no reason to. She didn't regret showing up in his room the night before.

"Morning," Luna smiled, pulling out a chair at the table.

"Good morning," said Bill, sipping his juice.

"Eat up Luna," Fleur called as she placed a plate of waffles on the table. "I am worried about 'arry, I hope they're alright. Eet has gotten so dangerous! You can't trust anybody!"

"Don't sweat it dear," Bill took a waffle. "I trust Harry's judgment. I'm sure Hermione and Ron are looking after him. Those three are nearly inseparable."

"Good morning," yawned Dean, groggily pulling up a chair opposite Luna. He rubbed his eyes, then looked at Luna and smiled.

"Morning," Luna smiled back, hoping she didn't blush. Fleur and Bill greeted him too, and soon everyone began to eat.

"So I'll be getting off work a little early today," Bill began. "once I get home, I'll take you two to Aunt Muriel's. Fleur's parents insisted we flee to France…"

"But realistically we can't leave his family!"

"They'll be coming here instead, so it might be little bit more crowded."

"We understand," said Luna. Dean nodded in agreement, seeing his mouth was stuffed with waffles.

"I hear eet isn't too bad at Aunt Muriel's," Fleur added. "After all, you'll be able to see Ginny and zee twins."

Ginny. How could they have forgotten? Dean and Luna shot each other a quick glance, but Luna immediately avoided his stare. She thought Ginny was a good friend of hers, but she couldn't think about why she forgot all about Ginny and Dean. She used to see them go off to abandoned corridors, not thinking about any of it. For the first time, she felt a little nervous. She knew Ginny was over Dean, but what about him? Everyone knew he took their breakup a lot harder, and who knew if he still thought about her before they had gotten to Shell Cottage?

After breakfast, Luna helped Fleur for the last time in cleaning up the dining room and kitchen. She didn't want to seem like she was avoiding Dean, but she needed to do something so she can think alone. _She's my friend, she'd understand. But what about Dean? Does he still have feelings for her? After last night, what do you suppose he thinks about us? Is there even an "us?" That's not the point. Do I really want something with him?_

Around noon, Luna walked over to the shore once again, taking off her sandals to dip her feet in the water. She found a big, smooth rock on the shallow end and sat on it, drawing circles in the water with her feet. Though the sky was a little cloudy, there was still enough sunlight to enjoy the weather. It wasn't too cold, or too hot, it was perfect. She remembered the day that she and Dean first kissed in the water. She smiled at the thought of it.

"Mind if I join?" It was Dean. Judging from the ash on his pants, Fleur made him clean out the chimney. She felt bad for him, considering he didn't have a wand and had to literally sweep the fireplace.

"Of course," she nodded. He dusted the ash off his pants and sat next to Luna on the rock. "You have a cut."

"Oh, this?" he noticed a cut on his forearm, covered in a little bit of blood. "It's fine."

"_Ferula_," she pulled out her wand and pointed it at his wound. A bandage wrapped his cut to stop it from oozing out any more blood.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

He looked at his bandaged forearm, and then at her. "How are you?"

"Quite alright actually, you?"

"Good."

She sensed that they were going to have to bring up the subject sometime. He sat a little bit closer to her, but she didn't budge. She felt a funny feeling in her stomach as his arm brushed hers.

"So do we need to talk about—"

"Ginny?" she accidentally blurted out. His eyes widened. "I'm sorry, don't think that was it? What did you want to talk about?"

"Wait, what about Ginny?" asked Dean. "You don't think I still fancy her do you?"

"I would understand if you did," she began. "After all you were together for quite some time. She is quite nice."

"But I don't."

"Hm?" she gave him a puzzled look.

Dean slowly formed a smile. "Didn't I tell you that I like you?"

Luna then realized her mistake, but wasn't convinced, "Yes."

"Well," said Dean. "I mean it when I say I like you. Ginny is a part of my past, and she clearly didn't share the same feelings that I had for her. I'm telling you now that this shouldn't be something to be worried about, and I don't mean to move things too fast, but you're here, with me. Doesn't that say something?"

"You're quite right," Luna looked up at him. He smiled and kissed her on the lips. She found her face getting a little bit warm and the look on his face told her that she was blushing. "So what do you consider, you and I?"

"Hmm, that is a valid question."

"Valid indeed."

"Last night wasn't a mistake, right? I don't think so anyway."

"Not at all."

"It's such bad time really," he began.

"With You-Know-who and his Death Eaters lurking around…"

"It's hard for everyone nowadays. Hmm," Dean nodded. "But should that stop us from being, _together_?"

"I honestly don't think it should. I would imagine if I was going through tough times, I'd want to be with someone I can depend on, whether it was platonic or, you know."

He held her hand, cupping it with his other hand on his lap. "Is that alright with you?"

Luna looked into eyes, "if it's alright with you." She smiled.

"It's settled then. You're my girl."

She liked the sound of that. It was ridiculous but also funny the way they had talked this over, being ambiguous and avoiding labels but still knowing what the other was talking about. She leaned her head on his shoulder as they both enjoyed the sound of the waves crashing against the cliff. Suddenly, she giggled.

"What's so funny?"

"You said, 'I don't mean to move things too fast,'" she smiled.

"And?"

"Did it occur to you what we did last night?"

Dean's ears got hot as he blushed in embarrassment. "Hmm, you got me there." He laughed with her and kissed her forehead.

Bill came home about an hour later. He briefed them about travelling through their Portkey, which was an old, dusty lamp. Dean and Luna said their goodbyes to Fleur, whose eyes were watery after giving them both hugs.

"Oh you two," she dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief. "Finally holding hands! I knew eet was a matter of time before you got together. _Romantique!_"

"You seemed to have kept a close watch on us," said Dean.

"Just a little bit," Fleur winked as she walked them out into the garden where the lamp was left on the ground. "Be careful!"

"We will, love," Bill kissed her on the cheek then stood in between Dean and Luna. "Right, on three. One…two…three!"


	6. Urges

**Chapter 6 – Urges**

Aunt Muriel's was a lot bigger than Shell Cottage. It was definitely roomy and her yard and garden were half the size of her house. Dean immediately noticed that they were no longer by the water anymore and it made him think how much he appreciated the scenery at Bill and Fleur's. Bill left almost as soon as Luna and Dean got settled in. Luna was happy to see that Mr. Ollivander was there as well, busy carving wood to make new wands. Fred and George were playing with a few products from their joke shop out in the patio with Aunt Muriel yelling from the sitting room.

"Bad business for the joke shop," said Fred. "With You-Know-Who and Death Eaters everywhere, no one has time for the simpler things in life.

George stomped on what looked like a mini quaffle that let out a farting noise. "Even with only one ear, I still manage to get a laugh out of things."

"I'm sorry about your ear," Luna began as she rummaged through their box of gadgets. "Daddy used to tell me there was a way to grow cursed body parts back. Something about a rare root called a rumpleweed, he swore there used to be loads growing in the woods nearby."

"It's not too bad," George replied. "I'd like to think of it as a battle scar."

"What have you two been up to at Bill's anyway?" asked Fred. "Thought it would've been a bit boring when Harry and everyone left eh?"

"Yeah, kind of," Dean avoided Luna's eyes. "But it was actually pretty nice over there by the water. Beats the Malfoys' dungeons."

"That must have been nasty," Fred shook his head. "Hey you two, did you want to be on Potterwatch this evening? It would definitely keep everyone's hopes high, knowing you two are now safe and that you ran into Harry."

"Of course!" Luna beamed.

Later that afternoon, Dean climbed a nearby oak tree on the grassy yard behind the house. He sat on the sturdiest branch, enjoying the cool breeze. He found himself liking moments like these where he sat alone; it was relaxing. Every time he'd do so he would end up thinking about his family, worrying for their safety, but also looking forward to the day he'd see them again.

"Dean?" Luna was walking from the garden, looking up at him. "Mind if I join? Or did you want to be alone?"

"I guess you can come up then," he joked. She pointed her wand at the tree's trunk, growing another branch below the one he sat on. Luna pulled herself on the new branch, and then took Dean's hand as she sat next to him. "I'm a little clumsy when I climb trees; I figure this would be easier."

She took his hand and cupped it with hers. He smiled at this, "How are you?"

"Alright, actually. You?"

"Good," answered Dean. "Nice to have company again, don't you think? The Weasleys have been really nice."

"Very nice," she nodded, dangling her legs below them. "I'm actually excited to be on Potterwatch tonight. It was unfortunate I never got to hear any of it at the Malfoys,' but no matter, we'll be there in person."

He admired her positive personality. He smiled again, looking into her eyes. "You're really something."

She looked at him curiously, "I sure hope so, what fun is it to be nothing at all?" He laughed at this, and then gave her a quick kiss on her lips. She smiled and said, "That feels nice."

"Yeah," he agreed. This time she leaned in and kissed him passionately, making sure not to lose her balance on the branch. He held her neck gently as her tongue made its way to meet his. He let out a little groan, and then Luna slowly pulled away. She noticed his mouth was still slightly open, and his eyes closed. "That's not fair."

"What is?"

"That," he opened his eyes. "The way you kiss me like that. It's not fair."

"How so?"

Dean knew she liked having that power, "well if we weren't alone I'd gladly take you inside and have my way with you. Given the circumstances, that's probably not going to happen."

"Good point," she sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Unless…"

She sat up and looked at him, "unless what?"

"Unless," he pushed her hair back, exposing her fair, smooth neck. He whispered, "We can find a place." He kissed her neck softly, knowing exactly how this made her feel.

"Dean…" she smiled, feeling her insides jumping. He slowly kissed his way down her neck, "this is not going to help you, you know."

"I'm controlling it," he whispered.

"OI!" a voice yelled from a distance.

"What the—"

"Wotch it!" Luna warned him but it was too late. Dean looked around to see who it was, but lost his balance, falling off the branch. He had landed on his arm, but luckily he didn't break it. Luna carefully got off the tree. "Are you okay?"

"Alright there, Dean?" George called. "Looked like a nasty fall."

Dean slowly got up, patting grass off his sweater and jeans, "I'll manage."

"Anyway, Aunt Muriel's been pestering me to come get you two," said George. "Dinner will be ready soon."

Dinner was a little bit awkward to say the last. Aunt Muriel was so interested in Luna's father that she wouldn't stop asking questions. It appeared rude to Dean, especially because she was very forward about what she thought of him. "Foolish, and sometimes just inexplicably mad!" She went on. Luna never got upset, though she did bluntly tell her that the Lovegood's don't care about what people thought of them. After she had enough of talking about Xenophilius, she directed her attention towards Dean.

"Muggle-born?" she asked while cutting her brisket.

"Not sure actually," said Dean. "He left when I was a baby, then my mum married a muggle. I've got no proof of any wizarding ancestry."

"Tsk tsk tsk," Aunt Muriel looked at him. "Well at least you're safe now boy, who knows where you could have been if you didn't run into Potter!"

"One lucky bloke I'd say," Fred patted him on the back.

After dinner, Lee Jordan had arrived, giving Aunt Muriel a fright as he knocked on the door. She made her way upstairs after yelling at Fred and George to take care of the dishes.

"Dean! Luna!" Lee noticed them plopped on the sofa. He made his way towards them, gripping what looked like an old, leather suitcase, "Heard you were kidnapped off the train!"

"Yes," nodded Luna. "But I'm here now, how are you Lee? I hear things are going well with Potterwatch."

"Quite good actually! Family's been safe as well. Been broadcasting in different locations for the past few months, thought we'd do one over here," Lee sat on an armchair. "So far this old radio has been doing the trick with the secret passwords. Though I reckon this would be our last one for a long time, I hear Snatchers may be on to our listeners. Ah, how are things with you Dean? Last I heard you ran from home! Never went back to Hogwarts, eh?"

"Bloody hell no," Dean shook his head. "With all those things they're doing to Muggle-borns? Couldn't risk it mate. It's bad enough my whole family doesn't really understand what's going on, so I told them it would be best if I made a run for it, at least till all of this over."

"I have high hopes for it," said Luna taking Dean's hand.

"Oi, I knew there was something funny about you two!" George came in and pulled up a stool next to Lee. "You haven't been snogging around here have you? Would drive Aunt Muriel all the way to Ireland and back."

Dean felt his ears get a little hot, "Oh no, course not."

"Well snogging or not," Fred apparated onto another chair by the fireplace. "Just don't let Muriel catch you. She's not that youthful anymore, you see. Finds young love a bit repulsive."

"ANYWAY," Lee cleared his throat. "Shall we get tonight's broadcast underway?"

"Right," said Fred and George.

Luna watched excitedly as they set up the old radio on top of the coffee table. It came with 3 large microphones, and some earphones. They all waited for Lee to tune the radio till the screeching noises were gone. He then pulled out his wand and tapped on it, _Padfoot_.

"Evening everyone," Lee began. "Thank you all for tuning in to tonight's edition of Potterwatch. River here."

"And Rapier," Fred added. George pushed the third microphone towards Luna and Dean, who were now sitting on the floor.

"Before we start, I'd like to say again, as many times before, that we hope you are all keeping safe during these harsh times. Take care of your families and trust yourselves. Now, we have two special guests tonight that will update all of you with some exciting news regarding our favorite seventeen year-old. Let me introduce you to…" Lee signaled for Luna and Dean to say their codenames, hoping they were able to think of one.

"Bard," said Dean.

"And Signy," Luna smiled.

"Much welcome to Bard and Signy, it is my understanding that you have some much exciting news on the whereabouts of our hero."

"Thank you River," Luna began as if she had done this before. "I'm sure you've heard the ordeal at Malfoy Manor?"

"Yes we have."

"To go into a little more detail, our hero was able to rescue all of the prisoners of the manor, including famous wandmaker, Ollivander himself."

"What display of courage eh River?"

"Very brave indeed, Rapier. And I assume Mr. Ollivander is now safe? And news of our hero and his companions?"

"Yes, he's now safe away from any Death Eaters," replied Dean. "As for Potter himself, I believe he's on the run once again, preparing to take on You-Know-Who that's for sure."

"Well I'm glad to know he's still out there, fighting," said Fred.

"He is," Luna agreed. "Which is why we shouldn't lose hope."

"Well said, Signy," Lee nodded. For the rest of the segment, they discussed further interrogations of known muggle-borns and any updates on missing families. George eventually borrowed the microphone to get in on the discussion. "Well, that ends tonight's Potterwatch. Unfortunately, this is our last broadcast as you have heard that we may have been leaked. With that said, I'm River."

"Rapier."

"Rodent."

"Bard."

"And Signy."

"Take care everyone, and remember do not lose hope! Goodnight, from Potterwatch," Lee switched off the radio. "Good one you reckon?"

"I'd say so," George agreed. "Though it would have been nice to have Lupin over, but with the baby and all."

"Good job you two," Lee turned to Luna and Dean.

"Thanks for letting us do this Lee," said Luna. "Hopefully if my father was listening, he'll now know that I'm okay."

"Not a problem at all," he smiled.

Just before Luna was ready to lie in bed, she heard a knock on her door. The room she was now in was also tiny, except it was cluttered with what looked like Aunt Muriel's old dressers, trunks, and clothes. She managed to dust off the bed and vanish all the cobwebs too.

"Dean?" Luna noticed he was already in his pajamas. She pulled him inside, quietly closing the door behind her. "Oh I don't think it would be right to do something here."

"Oh, yes I know," he whispered. "That's why I was thinking somewhere else."

"Are you sure?" He kissed her hard, against the door, making sure not to make any noise. He pulled away from her to find she was already short of breath. "Okay, where to?"

He smiled and took her hand. Luna switched off the lights in her room as they crept their way down the hall. They took light steps, hoping they wouldn't wake anyone, especially Aunt Muriel. Dean slowly opened what looked like a broom cupboard just at the top of the stairs.

"Won't it be too small?" she asked quietly.

"That's not going to matter," he smirked. "But no, it's perfect." He closed the door as she whispered, _Lumos_. The cupboard was spacious for what it was. The ceiling was about half a foot higher than Dean, and the walls had torn wallpaper on them. He cleared the wall that wasn't next to Fred's room and placed the brooms and buckets on the opposite side. He tried to do this as quietly as possible. Luna set her robe on a broom then helped and vanished all the cobwebs, especially because she felt a sneeze coming on.

"That's a lot better," she looked around at the small space.

"Loads better," he smiled. "Oh, did you want to keep the light on?"

"Best not to, huh?"

"Probably," he leaned in to kiss her as she extinguished the light. She could tell he's wanted her since they got there. His hand gripped her neck tightly as the other rubbed her back softly. She tucked her wand on a small shelf of bottles, slowly getting carried away with the moment. He continued to kiss her, pushing her against the cleared wall. He began to kiss her neck as his right hand made its way under her buttoned shirt. To his satisfaction, she wasn't wearing a bra so he cupped her breast, massaging her nipples with his fingers. She knew she couldn't make noise. She restrained a moan as he began to kiss her again.

Their tongues were accustomed to meeting each other. She was no longer shy about kissing him the way she wanted to. She didn't mind he was more aggressive this time; she liked it. His hand now traced her pelvis, rubbing her in between her legs. She knew she was already wet, and by the sound of a little chuckle he let out, he let his hand explore beneath her underwear, feeling her wet lips. He rubbed her clit as she gripped his arms. She loved the way it felt. She couldn't control her nerves, her body was on fire. She quickly pulled his shirt over his head, and even in the darkness, she could feel his defined, muscular arms.

"I'm ready when you are," she whispered softly into his ear.

"Yeah?" he whispered back. He pulled down his pajamas and underwear, as she did the same. "Need help?"

She stood there, bottomless while he slowly unbuttoned her shirt, revealing her perky breasts. He kissed her as he massaged them once more, then sucking on her nipples as she arched her back. She didn't want to wait anymore. She had enough of his teasing. She stroked his shaft, begging him to go inside her. Without any effort, he lifted her up against the wall. He rubbed her wet lips before he slowly teased her with his head.

"That's not fair," she moaned softly.

"No?" He thrust himself into her slowly, her legs now wrapped around his hips. He went slow, savoring the feeling. She was so wet; he could hear the gushiness every time he went in. He went deeper. He knew that the feeling drove her insane, pushing as deep as he could as he kissed her neck. She wanted him to go faster. Her legs tightened even more, giving him permission to go as fast as he wanted. He gripped her butt tightly as he kept going, making sure not to cause too much noise.

"Oh Dean…"

He slowed down a little bit, catching her gaze in the darkness. He kissed her again, lightly biting on her bottom lip. "You ready?"

Luna nodded. Dean grabbed an old rug on the shelf and dropped it on the floor beneath them. He picked up speed again, resting his mouth on her neck. She was still so wet; the feeling was out of this world. She was so tight, he wanted shag the life out of her. Then she began to moan. "Shhh…" he whispered, going deeper inside her. He knew she was close. She was pulling him closer to her, her ankles completely fastened on his lower back. She was moaning even more, they shouldn't be heard. He looked into her half-open eyes, covering her mouth with his right hand, his left hand gripping her bottom as he continued to thrust.

There was something so exciting about this. It was nearly forbidden, but they were doing it anyway. She tried to restrain herself as much as possible, especially because he was already trying to muffle down the noise.

"Oh god…" he heard her say underneath his hand. He was going faster now as her moans kept going. She felt it. They heard what sounded like glass shattering but ignored it, they wanted to finish. She wanted to scream out loud at the pleasure of it all. She knew how much her moans drove him insane. As soon as she came, he held in any noise and pulled out of her, coming onto the rag that was on the floor.

"Everyone's asleep!" A voice said.

Before Luna and Dean could catch their breath, they both rushed to get their clothes on. "Go and wake her!" The voice called again. Luna pulled on her robe over her pajamas. Dean had just pulled his boxers and pajamas on, stuffing the rag into his pocket. There were footsteps going up the stairs, then light seeping in beneath the door. Luna quickly felt on top of the shelf for her wand. Before Dean could pull his shirt back on, the door flung open.

"Dean?" Luna and Dean froze, their hearts still throbbing beneath their chests. They were speechless, both staring at Ginny Weasley.


	7. As Awkward As You Make It

**Chapter 7 – As Awkward as You Make It**

"Ginny, dear!" Mrs. Weasley called from the kitchen. "Did you wake Aunt Muriel?"

Dean quickly put his shirt back on. Ginny gestured them to get out of the closet, Dean heading straight to the bathroom and Luna fixing her disheveled hair. "Yes I will, we woke up Luna."

"Ah Luna must have gotten here today," said Mr. Weasley as he quietly set a trunk on the floor. "Fred and George would have heard us."

Ginny looked at Luna, puzzled. Without a word, she knocked on Aunt Muriel's door and in no time the old woman opened the door, yelling. "Well everyone's up now for sure, what's wrong Mum?" asked George as he went downstairs to meet his parents.

"Had to leave," Mrs. Weasley hugged George. "It was too risky staying at home now that the Death Eaters know that Ron's with Harry."

Fred and Dean soon followed, greeting Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Dean gave Ginny a polite "hello," eventually joining Luna on the sofa. "Any news about my father?"

"Well I assumed you were told about the ordeal when Harry came to visit, yes?" Mr. Weasley asked. Luna nodded, "well they took him to Azkaban almost immediately. But your father's a good man, I'm sure he can take good care of himself."

"I'm glad to see that you both are doing well and keeping safe," said Mrs. Weasley looking at both Luna and Dean. "I don't know what I'd do if one of my own was kidnapped by Death Eaters!

She held back tears, grabbing hold of George. "Cheer up mum, we're all here, save for Ron. But from what we heard from those two he's doing fine! No ears missing, completely intact!"

"Oh stop it," she slapped his forehead. "That is not funny. For heaven's sake, we must all get to bed! It's half past one in the morning!"

"Now now Molly, let's not forget that you woke everyone," Aunt Muriel said bitterly. "Arthur, there are extra linens in my room. You both can take the den and Ginevra can sleep on the extra bed in Lucy's room."

"Luna," Dean corrected.

"Whatever, David," Aunt Muriel shook her head was off to the staircase. Luna let out a soft giggle.

The Weasleys made their way to their sleeping quarters. Dean whispered "goodnight" to Luna as he followed Fred and George into their room. He was glad he was able to share a bit of time with Luna, but he knew now that they had more company, quality time would be a little bit hard to come by.

In Luna's room, it was silent except for the patting of an extra foldable bed Ginny pulled out of all the clutter. Luna didn't know what to say. Was there something to talk about? She sat in bed, pretending to read a book she had found on the shelf.

"Luna?" Ginny finally broke the silence as she fluffed her pillow.

"Hm?"

"I don't want things to be a little weird between us, you know?"

Luna put the book on her lap, "Of course not."

"So I'm just letting you know," she finally sat down on the bed which sunk a bit at the middle. "I don't have a problem with you and Dean. I'm past that, I'm sure you know that I fancy Harry?"

"I know."

"Well, yeah. Right," Ginny couldn't find any more words to say.

"I'm sorry you had to see us at a very questionable moment," Luna began. "I'm not normally like this, but you understand? You've dated quite a few boys."

"It was odd indeed," she nodded. "But it's none of my business. He's a nice guy and I truly do hope he makes you happy."

"Thank you," Luna smiled. "I find him very weird, but I would think everyone would say the same about me, so I guess it works out well. I'm quite fond of us, it's very different. In a way I feel like maybe I should really thank you because if you hadn't broken up, this never would have happened."

"I suppose," said Ginny at her bluntness. "I really didn't want this to come between us you know, the awkwardness. I see you as one of my friends and I really am happy for you. Not to mention I'm so glad you're safe! Been wanting to tell you that since I got here, except you know."

"I guess we can forget the broom cupboard," laughed Luna. "I heard you tried to steal Godric Gryffindor's sword from Snape's office!"

The two talked for another hour before falling asleep. Luna was happy that she didn't have to adhere to some rule about an ex-girlfriend. She no longer doubted that Dean really liked her and he cared for her. Before she drifted off to sleep, she remembered being in the hallway when Dean and Ginny would run off to an abandoned classroom to snog. She couldn't believe that a year later, she was with that same boy who ran off with her pretty friend. She never felt so liked by someone that saw beyond her eccentric personality. She was thankful for everything that had happened. She hated being in that dungeon at Malfoy Manor, but somehow deep inside her she was glad it happened. If she never was kidnapped, she and Dean would have never gotten to know each other.

A month went by staying at Aunt Muriel's. Sometimes a few of them would visit Bill and Fleur to give Muriel some breathing space. Luna and Dean could tell she wasn't used to having a lot of guests so they made sure to stay away when she seemed a bit cranky. Dean had gotten better at fighting his urges whenever he and Luna spent time together alone. He hated having to stop short, but he knew it would be inappropriate. Luna would poke fun at this a few times but would apologize immediately after, saying that she was "on the same broom on that one." One afternoon they laid in the grass, staring at the cloudy sky. She later told Dean about her talk with Ginny and that things were okay between them, after all they were friends.

"Well that's good, I was a bit worried it might have been a bit awkward in your room," said Dean as he put his arm around her while they walked through Muriel's garden.

"When this is all over," said Luna. "What are we going to do?"

"Good question, what do you want to do?"

"First of all, see my dad. Spend time with him of course, I can't imagine how dreadful it is in Azkaban. Before I was to go home for the holidays, he promised to show me a fruit-fly he'd caught out in the woods that had a Cornish pixie head."

"Wish I knew who my real dad was," Dean sighed. "Probably could have told me if I had wizarding blood so I wouldn't have been in this mess."

"Things wouldn't have happened the way they did though," Luna looked at him.

He met her gaze, "Very true. I'm quite happy the way things turned out."

"But it's no reason to doubt your father," she looked up at the sky again. "For all you know, maybe he had a legitimate reason to leave."

She always looked at the more positive side of things and Dean appreciated it. Before he began to really dwell on negativity, blaming his father, he was always brought back to the present by Luna. He smiled as she went on talking about her father, half listening, and the other half thinking about how lucky he was. The once foreign, jittery feelings in his stomach were now comfortable. He enjoyed spending time with her, listening to her stories. She would listen too, intently when he had something to say. For a moment he compared his relationship with Ginny to this, and there was no denying that he felt that Luna was a million times better than Ginny in so many ways. Ginny made him the physical type, snogging quite often and sometimes overpowered by her confidence.

Things were different with Luna. They talked. They spent quality time together. When they wanted to show affection and get intimate, they did and she was not shy about it. Even if they didn't get to be intimate as much, a hug from Luna comforted him and felt like everyone disappeared and it was just them. _Am I really falling that hard for her?_ So what if he did. He was happy and he was sure she was too. Even if she wasn't, he wanted to try his best to make her happy.

"I could lie here forever, just staring," she said dreamily.

He took her hand and kissed it, "It's quite nice."

She smiled and rolled on her stomach to look into his brown eyes, "You are such a gentleman. How is it that you've taken such an interest in someone like me?"

"Oh you're very interesting."

"Hmm? Is that so?"

"Of course," Dean smiled. "Well you're charming, beautiful, and very witty, despite your amusement of creatures like Crumple-Horned Snorkacks or Grindylows."

She slapped him on the shoulder, "Is that mockery I sense?"

"No," he laughed. "It's just being…smitten I guess you could say. Wish there was a less girly word of putting it."

She smiled, inching her face closer to his, "That word is just fine. It's quite accurate."

"Is it?"

"Mmhmm," she kissed him softly and passionately. He held her closer, running his hand slowly up and down her back. He fiddled with her long hair as she held him at the nape. He was tempted to pull her directly on top of him, but before he could decide what to do, they were interrupted.

"Oh," it was Ginny. She stopped a few feet away from them, but Luna still stayed leaning on Dean as he froze staring at the sky. "Sorry to intrude, but we all just heard that Harry, Ron, and Hermione were last seen breaking into Gringotts. Thought you both would like to know."

"Is that so?" Luna asked as she got up. "Are they alright? They weren't arrested were they?"

"Thankfully no," Ginny felt a little weird about the situation but kept her composure. "We're all discussing it inside, and it's almost time for dinner too. Mum decided to make a feast after hearing that Ron's alright."

"Oh," said Luna. "Well thanks Ginny, we'll be right in." Ginny nodded awkwardly and walked back to the house.

"That's good news," Dean got up a patted the dirt off his jeans. "Blimey though, Gringotts? Wonder what they needed there, never thought anyone would make it out alive robbing that place."

"Very dangerous indeed," she took his hand and as they made their way back to the house. "It's a shame she interrupted such an enjoyable moment."

"No, not a shame," Dean disagreed. "Otherwise it could have easily gotten carried away and THAT would be a shame to interrupt."

He smiled seeing that her cheeks flushed pink.

Ginny was not joking about the feast Mrs. Weasley cooked up. Fred and George were more than happy to be well-fed again, considering their mother was always worrying about Ron and sobbing about Percy that she wasn't her normal self. Though it did frighten her that they had managed to rob Gringotts, which would have sent them straight to Azkaban. Aunt Muriel kept going on about the trouble the twins have gotten into, which may have influenced Ron's rebellious attitude and the downfall of the Weasleys altogether.

For the next two days, Luna and Dean were back at Shell Cottage as Luna wanted Mr. and Mrs. Weasley to be able to sleep in the rooms as oppose to the dusty old den. Dean couldn't have been happier to be rid of Aunt Muriel's constant nagging at him and "Lucy," not to mention the overall crowdedness in the house. Fleur was happy to see them both, telling them how much she missed their helpfulness around the house and their down-to-earth personalities. Apparently her parents had just left back to France and she was happy to be rid of them, noticing her face looked a little worn out.

After an early dinner, Luna sat on Dean's bed reading as he sat on the window, sketching the view of the sea. He had been a little nervous lately, only because they were able to spend more time together again. They snuck out once into the old toolshed in the back yard since they couldn't risk being heard in their rooms. He had been giving their relationship a lot of thought lately, but he never talked about it. Luna noticed he was acting a little different, almost absent and lost in thought. She never put too much thought into it though.

He couldn't concentrate on his drawing anymore. He had only outlined the horizon when he got up and sat in front of Luna, "All done with your drawing?" she asked without looking up at him.

"No, far from done actually," said Dean. "Luna, can I ask you something?"

She sensed the nervousness in his voice and closed the book, "sure, something wrong?"

"Well not wrong," he explained. "But a little weird, not actually sure what it is."

"Hm, tell me about it."

"Luna," he began. "I know we haven't been completely vocal about our feelings for each other, which sounds kind of weird coming from a guy you know? Guys don't like talking about those things." She nodded, then he continued, "But I realize that everyday I find myself caring about you more and more. Not that it's a bad thing, but…I REALLY like you. Sometimes I feel that maybe, I like you more than you like me. It's really weird because it's normal to think about these things but it's annoying me a bit."

"You think I don't like you as much as you like me?"

"Kind of, I know it sounds a bit needy but I don't know how to explain it," he scratched his head.

"Odd," said Luna. "And here I am wondering when you'll get tired of me being so different."

He raised his eyebrows, "No, not at all. I like you the way you are."

She smiled, "then I don't think you need to worry about me not liking you as much. I think you should know that you drive me mad, in a very good way."

He smiled at her. He didn't know what the feeling was in his chest that made the jittery feelings come back in his stomach. He cupped her hands in his, looking into her eyes. "Luna…"

"Hm?"

"I…"

"Yeah?"

"I think I…I lo—"

Suddenly, Luna's bag of small books she took from Aunt Muriel's began to shake and made a sound like a muted siren. She looked at it suspiciously and slowly got up to check the source. Dean sighed but got up as well, realizing what might be rattling in the bag, "That sounds like, wait, you still have it?"

Luna opened the bag and reached in to find her old Dumbledore's Army coin, glowing, "Yeah, this has to be Neville. He's the only one at school that would alert everyone."

"You don't think something's going down at Hogwarts do you?"

"Why else would he call on Dumbledore's Army?" asked Luna. They both realized the importance of this signal, immediately running downstairs to tell Bill and Fleur.


	8. Gone

A/N: Here's another chapter that jumps around a bit. I wanted to cut to the parts of interaction (or lack thereof) between Dean and Luna. Quite a long chapter as we're coming to an end soon. If you haven't read the Deathly Hallows yet, then you have been warned again that there are some major spoilers here.

**Chapter 8 – Gone**

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Luna asked. "You don't have a wand."

They were now at the Hog's Head, Aberforth Dumbledore complaining to Bill on how many students have been apparating and going through the secret passageway behind his sister's portrait. It had been so sudden. Luna was worried that because Dean didn't have a wand, there was no way for him to defend himself. Once they alerted Bill and Fleur, they all immediately apparated to the Hogsmeade pub.

"Luna, I was in Dumbledore's Army too," Dean shook his head. "They need all the help they need."

"Just stay with me until you find a wand," she said firmly. Amidst the urgency of the situation, he managed to give her a smile as he went through the passageway first. They reached the Room of Requirement at the end of the tunnel where Harry, Ron, and Hermione had already arrived. Seamus ran over to Dean and gave him a hug, surprised to see his best friend.

"Blimey, I thought you might have been caught!" Seamus said patting him on the back.

"Been at Bill Weasley's for a while," he gestured to Luna. "Harry saved both of us at the Malfoys.'"

"Luna you'll show Harry, won't you?" interrupted Ginny. Apparently Harry had been going on about the lost diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw. Luna agreed to it, but before she ran off with Harry, Dean pulled her aside.

"Be careful," he told her.

"Of course," she stroked his cheek and ran off with Harry.

"You and Lovegood, eh? Never imagined that," Seamus whispered once Harry and Luna were off to the Ravenclaw common room.

"It's a long story," said Dean. "But to answer your question, yeah I'm with her. What about you? You're not looking to well."

Seamus had bruises all over his face and what looked like a broken hand, "Tried to fight off the Carrows. Hogwarts has been nasty mate, but I reckon things will turn around now that Harry's here. It's a battle for the ages."

"Gotta get myself a wand that's for sure."

"You'd be mad to show up for battle at Hogwarts without a wand!" Seamus shook his head.

* * *

"We're fighting," said Harry as he and Luna arrived back after their search for the diadem. The already filled Room of Requirement soon began to empty as everyone withdrew their wands to head into the castle.

"Dean?" Luna called into the crowd. "Dean?"

"Come on Luna," he held out a free hand and Luna took it, following him and Seamus with the rest of the D.A. "We need to stick together."

"And we need to find him a wand," added Seamus.

"I did tell him he needn't come being unarmed and all," she replied.

"My thoughts exactly," Seamus answered as they walked briskly up a plight of stairs. They took a different way, seeing that the corridors were too packed to walk through.

"Oi! Where do you think you're going?" The bulky Millicent Bulstrode appeared at the end of the corridor. "_Confringo!_"

"Watch out!" Dean grabbed Luna to avoid the curse.

"_Stupefy!_" Seamus called behind column. Millicent dropped to the ground as they all ran towards her. Luna and Seamus pointed their wands at her, making sure that she was indeed stunned.

"Take her wand," Seamus pointed at the short, black wand that rolled out of her hand.

"Thanks mate," Dean grabbed the wand and immediately felt like his spirit was lifted. It had been so long since his wand was taken.

* * *

"Stay with me," said Dean as students began to evacuate the Great Hall. "Things are going to get crazy in here."

"I'm ready for it," Luna said as she held his hand tight. She looked into his dark brown eyes, she feared for his safety. She wanted to get through this battle and go back to the way things were. They could spend summer together before her last year at Hogwarts. He could come over and have dinner with her father. She knew her father would like him. All these thoughts ran through her mind as she looked at his serious face. She kissed him on the lips, wanting to show him that she was indeed hers and that no matter what happened, she'll be there. "Everything will be fine."

His face softened a little, being reminded of how lucky he was to not be alone in this fight. He was happy that she was there with him. They stuck together, fighting off Death Eaters and the Slytherins that decided to join them. It was not till the announcement of Harry's death did they go their separate ways.

"There's no way, he can't be dead," Parvati Patil sobbed as they saw Hagrid carry Harry's limp body.

"HAGGER!" a giant suddenly appeared thrashing chunks of the castle into the crowd of Death Eaters. A chunk was thrown up in the air, causing the students to run in opposite directions. Dean pushed Luna out of the way as the boulder smashed in between them. Dirt flew into the air as everyone resumed battle.

"Dean?" Luna coughed as she noticed a cut on her cheek from the debris.

"Hurry Luna!" Hermione called. She and Ginny were running towards the castle with their wands held out. Luna looked around quickly but there was no sign of Dean, so she followed the girls, shooting counter-curses at the Death Eaters.

"She probably ran inside mate," said Seamus as he helped Dean up to his feet. "We've got to go. You alright, Parvati?"

"She's okay," Padma replied, holding out a hand for her sister to get up from the ground. They began stunning Death Eaters left and right and found themselves in a corridor where a curse nearly hit Parvati.

"You bloody kids think you're a match for Death Eaters?" It was Dolohov and Rookwood. Dolohov shot another curse this time at Dean who jumped behind a statue. Seamus and Padma held off Rookwood, their spells shooting across the hall as he dodged them. Their respective duels led them into the entrance hall where it had already been damaged by a blast.

"_Reducto!_" Dean yelled, the big chandelier on the ceiling exploded above the Death Eaters' heads.

* * *

"You little girls should know better than to try to finish me off!" Bellatrix had been dueling against Hermione, Ginny, and Luna. They had been holding her off so far, but they knew that she had only one motive and that was to kill each of them. There was pure fear in Luna, something that was so foreign because she was always so confident and positive but this was different. She had to stay alive and fight. Bellatrix would not have the pleasure of taking her life. She won't take everything from her. A killing curse nearly hit Ginny and Mrs. Weasley immediately stepped in.

Everything happened so fast. Luna ran, helping other students fight off Death Eaters and protecting others from harm's way. Mrs. Weasley killed Bellatrix Lestrange and soon after, it was Harry and Lord Voldemort, their spells blasted into the middle of the Great Hall. Lord Voldemort fell as his killing curse rebounded and the battle was won. Everyone was ecstatic and relieved that the fighting was over.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it," Luna smiled at Harry as she created a diversion for him to get away from the crowd. Her smile slowly faded as she realized that she hadn't seen Dean since the blast from Grawp. She began to walk through the broken down Hall, looking intently for Dean. _Where is he?_ She ran up and down the plight of stairs, through corridors and the quad, there was no sign of him or Seamus. She ran back into the Great Hall to find that students were laying dead bodies on the floor. She recognized the faces of Tonks and Lupin, dreading that she'd see that familiar, dark, handsome face.

"He knocked out after Dolohov shot a curse," Parvati's voice echoed in the corner where Gryffindors had gathered. "He's been bleeding since."

Luna walked towards the crowd and saw Madam Pomfrey at the corner of her eye fighting her way to help the injured student. "Help him up! He needs be tended to!" Madam Pomfrey ordered some students.

That's when it hit her. The body that was being carried was indeed all too familiar. Blood had been seeping through his torn clothes. It looked like deep slashes over his body, with one significantly deep cut across his chest. His face; it had been bruised and his right eye a little black. It was like seeing death all over again. She was reminded of her mum, how much pain and sorrow she felt seeing her go. _It can't be._ As they laid his body down on the floor, Madam Pomfrey began reciting spells at his cuts to stop the bleeding. Luna stood beside Seamus, speechless.

"He'll be alright," Seamus assured her.

"Everyone give him some room," ordered Madam Pomfrey. "I need help mending the injured!" She called as students ran to her aid. They all ran off finding any students that were hurt during the battle.

"Dean?" Luna hoped he would wake up. His eyes were shut as if he were in a deep sleep. Her eyes welled up in tears as she kissed his lips. She studied his body, now cut and bloodied. She conjured up a bowl of hot water and a towel by his side. She ripped his shirt off to find that the cuts were now stitched magically. She took the towel and cleaned up the blood. Seamus sat against the wall exhausted, watching Luna tending to Dean. A few hours passed as the Great Hall began to empty. Students were evacuating as others apparated back with their families. They transferred Dean to the hospital wing and Luna followed.

"My dear, go get some rest," Madam Pomfrey pulled a blanket over Dean as he slept. "I promise you he's going to be fine."

"I want to be here when he wakes up," said Luna. She was still in her dirty, ragged clothes. She didn't want to leave his side, afraid that maybe if she was gone for a minute he'd wake up. Seamus eventually came to see him and urged Luna to rest. She remained optimistic that Dean would get up soon and she sat in the chair beside him, waiting.

It was not till Neville arrived that she finally got up from her seat. "I just heard they've released some of the prisoners from Azkaban, including your dad."

"Really? How soon?" Luna asked. She hadn't seen her father in so long and at times she'd worry about him being imprisoned.

"McGonagall just said they're releasing them as we speak," said Neville. "I remembered your father was taken so I thought you'd like to know straight away."

"Thank you Neville," she managed to smile but then looked at Dean. Her father was getting out and she knew he would want to see her. But what about Dean? She couldn't just leave him. She debated a few minutes, even discussing with Seamus about Dean.

"Don't worry I'll be here," said Seamus. "Your father will be looking for you."

Finally made her decision, she told Seamus that she would be back as soon as she could to see him. She wanted to make sure her father was okay and seeing that Dean was well taken care of, she kissed his forehead and left. She found Professor McGonagall in the entrance hall, beckoning fellow teachers to help clear the mess made from the battle.

"Ah Miss Lovegood," she saw Luna make her way downstairs. "I assume you'll be wanting to see your father?"

"Yes, where will they be taking him Professor?" she asked.

"Ministry of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt is clearing the falsely imprisoned of their charges." she answered rather immediately. "You can apparate out of Hogsmeade."

"Thank you," Luna left as soon as she could.

* * *

The ministry was crowded with many reporters from the Daily Prophet. The unforgivable "Magic is Might" column was now broken and all Luna could see was flashes from cameras at the scene. She asked around for where she may find her father but no one was listening, then she heard Kingsley's loud voice above the reporters.

"What about the falsely accused? Where have they been taken and what will the ministry do about this?" a blonde reporter asked.

"They are currently being assessed in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, most of them will be going back home to their families today," said Kingsley. "With the ministry now rid of Death Eaters, we will be sure to imprison those that supported Lord Voldemort and tainted the ministry with such inhumane practices."

Luna ran towards one of the elevators. She had never been in the ministry before so she entered an empty elevator, hoping it would take her to the right department. It was three elevator stops till the voice announced, "Department of Magical Law Enforcement." She stepped out into the loud hallway where witches and wizards were getting paperwork organized. She walked into the big room where many cubicles were, looking for any sign of her father. Suddenly, she saw a few people walk out of a room, rejoicing and meeting their families that were sitting on chairs lined against the wall. These people looked like they had been through hell and back, their hair and clothes dirty and their bodies frail-looking. She took a seat next to a child with his mother. By the looks of it, the little boy was missing her father too. Eventually his father did come out of the room and carried him up on his shoulder as they left. It was only a matter of time till her father would walk out of the room. She then thought of Dean, hoping that she would make it back in time to see him. She knew he wanted to return home too.

"Is that…my Luna?" a man with disheveled, long, blonde hair walked out of the room and stared at her.

"Daddy?" she formed a smile and ran towards him, hugging him as tight as she could.

"Oh I've missed you so," he kissed her on the forehead. "Are you okay? Is the news all true? Harry Potter defeated Lord Voldemort?"

They talked for what seemed like ages in that hallway. Eventually they both left the Ministry and went home by the Floo network. Luna found their home to be still intact even after the Death Eaters had taken her father. Before walking into their home, she realized that there was somewhere she needed it to be.

"I'm sorry Daddy, but I need to go," said Luna as she stopped before their doorstep.

"And where does my daughter have to be at this time?" he asked opening the door.

"With a boy," she said looking at the grass. "He was hurt during the battle and I know he needs me."

Her father looked at her with a concerned expression, then slowly formed a smile, "This boy must mean a great deal to you I presume?"

"A very great deal," she explained. "I met him while I was imprisoned at the Malfoys' and he's kept me company since."

"And does this boy make you happy?"

"Yes, even during the darkest times."

He sighed and hugged Luna, "Be back before sunset. And be very careful, I cannot afford to lose you again."

"I will, I love you daddy."

"I love you sweetheart," he said as she waved and then apparated.

The school was unusually quiet. There were barely any students roaming the halls, only some prefects that decided to stay and get the castle back in one piece. Luna ran into Neville on her way to the hospital wing.

"Do you know if Dean woke up?" she asked.

"Dunno," he shrugged. "Saw Seamus earlier, I'm sure they're both still up there though."

She was excited to see him. Everything was finally getting back to normal: her father was home, the ministry was making sure to take care of any wrongdoings caused by Lord Voldemort, and even the school was slowly getting fixed. She ran up the steps and pushed through the doors of the infirmary to find that the bed that Dean laid in was empty.

"Shhh!" Madam Pomfrey scolded as she looked over the others who were injured.

"Sorry," Luna whispered. She walked towards the bed and couldn't help but notice that it appeared to have been made. There was no trace of him or Seamus. "Madam Pomfrey, did Dean leave?"

"Oh Mr. Thomas?" she asked. "He woke up when Mr. Finnegan accidentally set his tray of food on fire. Finnegan left a few hours ago but Mr. Thomas insisted that he'd wait. He waited until he got a notice from his mother. Poor woman had been worried sick since he left. He left almost immediately after the owl came."

"I see," Luna sighed. "Thank you." Her heart sank a little, but she knew he was safe and nearly healed. She went home, thinking about him. Even at dinner, she'd manage to listen to every word her father said about Azkaban but she couldn't help but wonder how Dean was.


	9. A Lonely Summer

A/N: Almost done! :)

**Chapter 9 – A Lonely Summer**

"Luna! Could you please help me lift these blocks back?" Her father called from the yard.

"Be right there!" She yelled from her room. She had just put up the sketch that Dean made at Shell Cottage. He had been looking for the drawing the day after, but Luna thought he didn't need to know that she took it. She was glad she did because every time she woke or went to sleep, she would see that same drawing and think of him. She saw the portraits she painted of Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville on her ceiling and felt that Dean's drawing had to be somewhere else. He was definitely more than just a friend to her.

It was the beginning of June and the skies were much clearer and the sun brighter. Every now and then Luna and her father would work on remodeling their home since they got back. Luna's room was a little bigger now and they made a separate space for the Quibbler. After the fall of Lord Voldemort, Xenophilius made it a mission to take Luna's account of her experiences into the following issue. That issue had been the thickest ever and everyone wanted a piece of it. A few times the Weasleys invited them over for dinner, making summer a little bit more interesting. Sometimes Luna would just stop by to see what they were up to, and found Harry and Hermione visiting on numerous occasions.

"You haven't talked to Dean at all?" Ginny asked as she rummaged through their attic. It was a little different at the Weasley's, especially after the loss of Fred. George had been running the shop as usual, but kept his room the same way, as if he had still been sharing it with Fred. Luna was over for dinner once and when Fred was brought up, there was always silence. She remembered the funeral that they held for him a few weeks back. She had hoped Dean would turn up because many Gryffindors attended, but he was nowhere to be found. Even Seamus said he hasn't gotten an owl back yet.

"No," sighed Luna. "I sent an owl the other day, no letters so far. I'm sure I'll run into him sometime."

"I'm sure you will," Ginny pulled out a box of old books, stacking it on top of other boxes that she wanted to take down to her room. "There's no doubt it's a little bit weird he hasn't contacted anyone, not even Seamus. They're almost inseparable."

"Peculiar indeed," Luna stared at the books that were in the box. "How's Harry by the way?"

"He's been staying with Andromeda, Teddy's grandmother," Ginny replied. "Says he wants to be there for him, even if Teddy won't remember it."

"Charming," Luna smiled. She helped Ginny bring the boxes downstairs to her room. "Well I should probably go, daddy will be needing my help for sorting out copies of the Quibbler."

"You're not staying for dinner?"

"Can't today unfortunately, but thanks for thinking of me."

"Luna," said Ginny. "He'll turn up."

Luna didn't show much emotion, but Ginny knew that she was concerned that she didn't hear anything about Dean. "I'm sure he will, see you again soon." She passed Ron and Hermione on the way out, Ron apologizing for accidentally kicking Crookshanks off the bed. Summer had been good to her so far; she had been able to see most of her friends and spend quality time with her father, but she knew there was something missing. Even just a letter, a sign, anything that showed her that he knew she was thinking of him, and he did the same.

June went by slow, but bearable. Their house was finally finished and Xenophilius felt it was appropriate to hold a kind of housewarming party the following month. He took an interest in Luna's friends and instead of being invited by the Weasleys, he thought it would be refreshing for once to invite people over now that their house was more spacious and somewhat organized. Luna and her father walked over to the Burrow, stopping occasionally when he saw an interesting insect flying around. They extended their invitation to the Weasleys who were more than happy to attend. Mrs. Weasley even insisted in helping prepare the food. Luna enjoyed her father's cooking, but she didn't complain if Mrs. Weasley brought some of her dishes as well. Ron on the other hand seemed insistent that his mother help cook, maybe even cook all the dishes.

Luna spent the next day sending owls to Hermione, Harry, and Neville, though Hermione and Harry would have already heard about dinner from the Ron and Ginny. She liked sending the invitations anyway. She wrote them individually putting a personal message for each and every one of them. With her wand, she cast a spell to make the letters bounce up and down the paper, restraining themselves in a sentence for its reader. After finishing her last owl to Neville, she took another piece of parchment. She stared at it for a while, wondering if Dean would be able to see her invitation. Her eyes went from the blank page to the sketch on the wall. She dipped her quill and began to write:

_Hello Dean,_

_ I hope all is well with you. I sent you an owl a few weeks ago but I haven't gotten an owl back so I assume maybe things with your family have been busy. Anyways, what I intended to say was that I want to invite you to my house for dinner on the evening of July 12__th__. Daddy and I had just finished remodeling our home and we thought it would be appropriate to invite our dear friends and neighbors for a nice dinner. The house looks amazing, I wish you can see it. Well, you haven't seen it before, but it's much more agreeable to the eyes I should say._

_ Anyways, I do hope you're doing fine. I would really like it if you could join us, but I won't be hurt if you won't. I miss you a lot. Take care._

_ Your Luna._

She read her letter five more times to make sure it sounded right. Taking the last envelope on her desk, she folded the letter and sealed it. Her owl, Sadie, flew to her desk and took the envelope that was signed "Dean Thomas" and she was out the window. Luna watched her owl fly into the blue sky, hoping that he would get her letter.

The next day Luna spent most of the day fishing by the creek. She hummed dreamily, her feet submerged into the water. Her father was busy writing up the next issue of the Quibbler so she knew that giving him his space allowed him to be more productive. She began to reminisce the months that she spent at Shell Cottage and Aunt Muriel's. Their first kiss, it was so new and exciting to her. It puzzled her for a little bit, not knowing if she really had feelings for Dean. It was a surprise to her how much he understood that she didn't want to admit how she felt. It worried her a little bit when they didn't discuss it, thinking that maybe he had lost interest. She remembered the jittery feeling she got every time he stood close. She loved to smell him when she could; he always smelled fresh. Then there was their first night together, when it was she who came to him, wanting to explore their odd attraction.

He was such a catch. He was so kind and read her like a book. _How could Ginny let go of someone like him?_ She was grateful for every minute they spent together. She wanted it all back. Going to sleep at night wasn't the same because she'd stare at his drawing, thinking about that night when she watched him sketch out the dark landscape. Suddenly, she saw her owl flying towards her from the distance. Was this it? Could it be that her letter had finally come? The owl slowed down, dropping an envelope on the grass beside her. Luna smiled, seeing that her name was etched legibly on it. She took it, and opened it as fast as she could. She unfolded the letter inside:

_I'm sorry love, I won't be able to make dinner. I know it would have been fun to meet your father. I've been so busy lately, I wish I can tell you all about it, but I think you'll hear about it soon. I miss you so much Luna, more than you'll ever know._

_Dean_

Her heart sank, hoping that he would be able to come see her. Everything leading up to their housewarming dinner was a blur. She remained cheery, but there wasn't anything memorable about it. Things picked up a little bit the week before the dinner. Xenophilius wanted to get his drafts for the next issue done to get rid of any clutter that was piling up in his workspace. Luna got the sense that he wanted the dinner to be perfect, especially because he had been spending time in the kitchen trying to cook daily, thinking of what dish to make for their guests. It was not until Wednesday evening when he settled for roasted herb beets, after several attempts at casseroles and soups. Luna liked his soups, but she knew that their guests were much accustomed to flavorful home-cooked meals. With Mrs. Weasley helping with food, Luna assured her father that he needn't worry.

Neville sent an owl the next day, saying that he and his grandmother would be bringing some cake and tarts, and that she insisted they don't worry about making any other desserts. Along with Neville's letter, Luna received a letter from Hogwarts.

"It's a bit too early to be sending your booklist isn't it?" asked her father as he looked over his layout of the Quibbler.

Luna sat on a bar stool in the corner and opened the envelope, "Yes, we still got two more months before school."

"Well then?"

Luna traced down the letter rather quickly, "It's about my apparition and nonverbal magic tests. I never got to take them last year so they're allowing me to take it a month into the term."

"That's good," said her father, flicking his wand as he rearranged the pictures in the layout.

"And Hogwarts is going to be a bit crowded this year," she then said. "Because so many students dropped last year, they're being allowed back for either full or half terms. Should be an interesting year I think." She handed the letter to her father.

He skimmed it quickly, then gave it back to Luna, "More opportunities to catch up with old friends don't you think?"

"Yes indeed," she nodded. "I can imagine Professor Flitwick and Professor McGonagall trying to add more rooms in the dormitories as we speak."

"Oh which reminds me my dear," said Xenophilius. "What was the name of that boy you are so fond of?"

"Dean Thomas," she replied, feeling a little weird saying his name for the first time in a while.

"Ah so it was!" he grabbed the Daily Prophet in the corner of his desk. "You know I don't like reading the Prophet, but there was something about that name sounded familiar. Turn to page six."

Luna looked at the paper curiously, scrambling for page six then looking at tall the articles. Then one caught her eye:

**More Death Eater Cases Revealed**

It was not until recently did young wizard Dean Thomas discover that he in fact was a half-blood wizard, and not a Muggle-Born that he had thought all along. His case is one of the many discovered by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, along with the help of famous wandmaker Ollivander, after inspecting Death Eater wands that were confiscated by the convicted criminals. Since the fall of You-Know-Who, Azkaban has checked in over sixty convicted wizards and witches that are believed to be Death Eaters or have supported them.

"I didn't know my father," said the young Mr. Thomas. "My mother never knew he was a wizard either. All she ever told me was that he left when I was still a baby."

His father, Darren Rhodes Thomas, was indeed a wizard. Alecto Carrow's wand was investigated using a process similar to the effects of priori incantatem, allowing the ministry to be able to see the spells the wizard or witch has casted in the past. With this method, the ministry is able to charge these convicted criminals with unforgivable curses and murders that were never recorded. Thomas had been on the run from the Death Eaters as he was urged several times to join them. Carrow is charged for the murder of Darren Thomas.

Many families are discovering the whereabouts of their missing relatives thanks to the ministry's progress with their investigations. Patricia Shunpike, mother of Knight Bus conductor Stan Shunpike, is relieved to have found her only son.

"When my sister told me Stanny ran off with the Death Eaters, I couldn't believe it! I knew he had to been under the Imperius Curse, he would never do that. Thankfully we found the witch who caused him agony all this time. So glad he's back home now."

For those like Dean Thomas, these investigations speak to the heart. Mr. Thomas was humble after being granted his father's old vault at Gringotts, saying "Sure I've inherited all his stuff, but it's not what's important. I now know my father wasn't a cruel bloke who abandoned his wife and kid, he did it to protect us. And that I'm really thankful for."

Luna stared at the moving picture next to the second paragraph. It was Dean and what looked like his mother. She was short with a round pretty face. Her hair was wavy and her skin a little bit lighter than Dean's. Dean appeared to have been holding an old frame of family portrait: It was his father and pregnant mother, smiling for the camera as they both held their hands over her belly. Luna smiled at the picture and stared at it all day. That explained everything: why he wasn't writing, why he couldn't see her, a big bomb was dropped that changed his life.

She placed the copy of the Daily Prophet on her desk. She knew her father didn't like that the paper was still delivered to their home, but she was glad she read that article today. Somehow, she felt connected to him for once this summer. The article was able to show her what had he'd been up to and it was another way of getting to know him even more. She was genuinely happy for him and she wanted to let him know that. Quickly grabbing a piece of parchment, she began to write:

_Dean,_

_I just saw the article on the Daily Prophet. I'm happy for you that you found out who your father really was. I understand that it's such overwhelming news and I hope that it's given you and your mother closure. If ever you need me, I'm here for you. I hope we can see each other again._

_ Your Luna._

With that she folded the parchment and sealed it in an envelope. Sadie flew into her room, picking up the envelope, and flew out the window to deliver the letter.


	10. You Again

A/N: And here is the final chapter. I had a lot of fun writing this fanfic, and I hope you enjoyed reading it. Let me know what you think about it, but please no rude comments, especially because this is my first time writing Dean/Luna. I have to say this is my favorite pairing, aside from Ron and Hermione of course. Enjoy this extra long final chapter :)

**Chapter 10 – You Again**

Luna just finished preparing the long table for their guests. She decorated the dining room with silver and gold streamers and picked fresh flowers in the garden and put them in vases. She smiled, feeling very accomplished at the table setup. They managed to clean the house up and her father closed off his workspace so his magical printers didn't accidentally shoot out some papers. She went upstairs to the bathroom and ran the water. Checking the water temperature with a finger, she flicked her wand and soapy bubbles that smelled of peaches began to form. She undressed and submerged herself into the water.

She hummed as she scrubbed her body with a lather sponge. Outside the door she could hear her father running up and down the stairs, making sure everything in the house was in order. Smiling at this, she laid her head against the edge of the tub and closed her eyes.

"More drawings?" she asked.

"Just a few," Dean flipped through his sketchbook. They were sitting along the creek by Luna's house. "Thought you might like them."

"They're all very good."

"No favorite?"

"Hmm, not especially," she said looking through them once more. He had done sketches of animals, a view from his bedroom window, and what he called a "football."

"Really?"

"I don't think they're as good as the one you made at Shell Cottage," Luna thought. "Perhaps you're losing your touch."

"That's not nice," he frowned.

"I'm sorry," she wrapped her arms around him, sniffing the fresh scent off his plaid shirt.

"Where have you been?" Dean asked. She was no longer hugging him. They were at platform 9 ¾ and it was empty.

"I've been at home with my father," she replied. "And you?"

"Home as well. Did you miss me?"

"Very much."

Dean smiled, "so where are we going now?"

"Not sure," she looked around at the empty station. "Wherever you want to go."

"And you'll go with me?" he walked closer to her and took her right hand.

"Of course," she smiled. He leaned forward, his lips about to meet hers. Finally, just to feel his lips again, any moment now.

"LUNA!" Her father had been knocking for the past five minutes.

"Sorry daddy, dozed off," she answered.

He laughed, "I thought you might have. Well get ready darling, the Weasleys will be here soon."

She drained the water and dried herself off. It didn't take long to get ready. Luna decided the night before she was going to wear the same silvery dress that she wore to Slughorn's party in her fifth year. Rummaging through her jewelry box, she found a pair of dangly red ribbon earrings. Pleased with her reflection in the mirror, she went downstairs to help her father prepare their dish. Neville and his grandmother arrived before the Weasleys, shoving their desserts into the Lovegoods' fridge.

"How's summer Luna?" asked Neville as she offered him some punch.

"It's been fine," she replied as she set the tray of cups on the coffee table. "Helping my dad around a lot now that I'm usually home. Once in a while I'll go down the hill and visit Ron and Ginny."

"Good good, excited for your last year at Hogwarts?"

"I guess you could say so, you're not coming back for half a term are you?"

Neville shook his head, "I just have to take my N.E.W.T.s in October, and then I'll be set. I'd like to go back to teach Herbology though."

"Oh how exciting! You were always so good at it, I'm sure Professor McGonagall would be happy to let you know when their next opening is after Professor Sprout retires. Even then, you could always assist her with the greenhouses."

"Thanks Luna," Neville smiled.

"I'm so proud of him!" His grandmother was boasting about his experiences during the Battle of Hogwarts.

"Good for you Neville, such bravery," Xenophilius pointed at him.

"Hello!" Molly Weasley called behind the front door. Luna opened the door and found that Mrs. Weasley had outdone herself. She was levitating a big pot of what smelled like hot lentil soup.

"Sorry about that, make way," said Mr. Weasley, pointing his wand at the rest of the trays and dishes they brought, leading towards the kitchen. "Oh hello Xen!"

"Molly you needn't cook for the whole England!" Xenophilius joked showing Arthur to the stove.

"Not a problem at all! Had Ginny and Hermione helping me this afternoon, thought I'd pass on the cooking secrets and all," she winked.

"Hi Luna!" Hermione hugged Luna.

"Your place looks real nice," said Ron looking around, thinking about how it looked the first time the trio visited Luna's father. "Good job."

"Thanks Ronald," said Luna. "We did put in a lot of work into it. Glad you like it. Punch?"

Luna went around offering punch as Mrs. Weasley and Neville's grandmother were busy in the kitchen. Xenophilius showed Arthur into his workspace as they had a glass of wine.

"Blimey! These are printers yes? I have a Muggle one in the garage," Mr. Weasley inspected the Quibbler printers.

"Yes, printed over thousands of copies already and still working with no problem!"

"Impressive! I love these hybrid gadgets you know, Muggles have so many fascinating inventions that we could use with a little touch of magic."

"Spoken like a true innovator!"

"DINNER!" Mrs. Weasley called everyone to the dinner table. Luna chose a seat in between Ginny and Neville. The table was now loaded with dishes in the center, glasses filled with either wine or apple cider.

Luna's father grabbed his glass as he stood at the head of the table. "Before we dig into this wonderful feast of food on the table, I'd like to welcome each and every one of you into the Lovegoods' home. We'd also like to thank you for joining us tonight for our little housewarming dinner, and may this be the first of many."

"Here here!" said Mr. Weasley.

"I'm famished," Ron felt his stomach growled.

"Couldn't have said it any better, let's eat!" Xenophilius smiled. Conversations carried on during dinner, even when mouths were filled with the delicious food Molly prepared.

"These beets are terrific Xen," said Neville's grandmother. "Very rich."

"You're too kind," He gave Luna a quick look before asking her about the desserts she brought.

"Did you hear about what happened to Dean?" asked Neville.

"Oh yeah," said Harry. "It was on the Daily Prophet not too long ago right?"

"Yeah, I read about it, though Daddy doesn't like that the Prophet still gets delivered here," said Luna lowering her voice. "But it's incredible isn't it? The ministry's been able to uncover so many cases that weren't even reported over eighteen years ago."

"It's really impressive," said Hermione. "I personally don't like the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, but I have to say they're helping out so many families. Poor Dean, he must have grown up not liking his father."

"It's a shame he couldn't come, would've been nice to catch up with him," Neville drank his cider.

"He really hasn't sent more owls?" asked Ginny whispering to Luna.

She shook her head, "No matter, he's very busy."

"Did you all receive letters from Hogwarts? About the half-terms and what-not?" asked Ron, his mouth filled with potato gratin.

"Chew Ronald, please," Hermione whispered.

"I got one," said Harry. "We obviously dropped out for a year so I'm definitely going back if I want a job."

"You'd think the ministry would excuse you being You-Know-Who's killer and all," Ron thought.

"It's only right the wizards and witches finish their education," Hermione noted. "What about you Neville? Are you scheduled to take your N.E.W.T.s?"

"In October."

"I should start studying soon," said Hermione worriedly.

"You can't study if you haven't gotten material for the term," Ron added.

"How is Charlie doing?" asked Luna's father as slices of cake landed on everyone's plates.

"Oh Charlie's always busy with the dragons," Molly replied.

It was a pleasant dinner. The adults continued their conversations over another bottle of wine as everyone else hung around the sitting room. Luna pulled out her chess set for Ron, who wanted to play Neville even if he knew that it would be no contest. Hermione and Luna were having a friendly argument about what caused the explosion of the house last year. George was showing Harry his new gadgets that he's been working on for the shop, which one of them exploded when Harry touched it.

"Hmm, that needs some work," George thought.

Despite the good company, Luna knew that the company of a certain person was what she'd been longing for. Around half past eleven, Neville and his grandmother left and the Weasleys soon followed. Luna helped her father clean the table and the kitchen after their guests left. She admired her father's hospitality towards her friends and would never forget that night. Before she went to bed, she hugged her father as he looked over the draft of the next Quibbler.

"Goodnight daddy tonight was fun," she said.

"Goodnight darling, sweet dreams," he kissed her forehead. She ran upstairs and changed into her pajamas. She lay in bed, staring at the drawings of her friends on the ceiling. Her eyes found the drawing on the wall across her, and then soon she drifted off to sleep. She never dreamed of Dean again for the rest of the summer.

* * *

September came and Luna had been busy packing her trunk with the books she just picked up from Diagon Alley the week before. For the past month and a half, Luna no longer tried sending owls to Dean. It no longer bothered her that he never contacted her and she decided it wasn't something she wanted to keep dwelling on. Platform 9 ¾ was busier than ever. They added another car to the Hogwarts Express due to many 7th years that didn't finish their courses the term before. Luna hopped on the train and immediately heard the familiar "It's Loony!" hisses as she looked for an empty compartment.

"Luna!" Ginny called. "Sod off!" She chased away some fifth years making fun of Luna.

"Thanks Ginny," she took a seat.

"Not at all," Ginny smiled. "Ron's just saying hello to Hermione's parents. Harry should be coming in as well."

The trip to school was enjoyable in their private compartment. Ron complained about having to go back for another term when the three of them practically saved the world. Hermione went on about the new books that she brought with her. Not to anyone's surprise, Luna voiced her opinions of the lack of rationality in N.E.W.T.s, something that bothered Hermione's book-smart philosophy.

As the train ride was coming to an end, they all changed into their school robes. It was a weird feeling for most of them except for Ginny, especially because it had been quite some time since they were back in Hogwarts. They all separated once they arrived, Ginny insisting that Luna should sit with the Gryffindors. Luna politely refused. The start-of-term feast was different this year. It was obvious that Professor McGonagall made a few changes to the Great Hall, expanding house tables and decorating the walls with all the house mascots.

The sorting went by surprisingly fast, the little first years running excitedly to their house tables. Then came the welcome speech from Professor McGonagall, which was quite moving. She discussed the trials and triumphs from the year before and stressed that Slytherin must earn the school's respect again. Once she finished her speech, the students began their loud conversations over the mass of food they ate. Luna ate alone on the Ravenclaw table, but that didn't matter. She did it for so long so it never bothered her. A few sixth years said hello to her, only to whisper to the younger ones that didn't know her that Loony always sat alone.

As students began making their way up to their dormitories, she caught Harry and Ginny before they headed up a staircase.

"I told you that you could've sat with us," said Ginny.

"Don't worry about it," Luna shrugged. "It's all part of my experience here at Hogwarts. Maybe I'll stop by your table for dinner tomorrow. Really, it's not a big deal."

"Goodnight Luna," said Harry as they walked up the staircase.

Luna walked up a different staircase towards Ravenclaw Tower. She put on her wrackspurts goggles as she skipped down the corridor. She was surprised on how much wrackspurts were flying towards the ceiling.

"Loony Loony Loony!" It was Peeves. "What are the spectacles for hmmm? Spying are you? Tsk tsk tsk."

"You have many wrackspurts on you Peeves, can't you feel them?"

"Wrack what?"

"Wrackspurts. They're all over you."

Peeves looked at his ghostly body, twisting and turning, panicking at the creatures he could not see. "Thanks a lot Loony! How am I supposed to get these off me?" He talked to himself as he disappeared into the wall.

Luna didn't bother to hang around the common room where many seventh years were up telling stories. She stayed in her bed, closing the curtains of her four-poster. She began to read September's Quibbler issue, falling asleep at the 'Legend of Chimaeras' column that was written by her father's apprentice that started working for the Quibbler the month before.

Luna loved getting up early. She woke up to Latisha Randle snoring in bed and decided that a walk around school would brighten up her day. She dressed in her uniform, choosing the skirt and leggings over trousers. As she exited the bronze door of the common room, she stood by the window and inhaled the fresh morning air. She loved how fresh air cheered her up. Skipping down to the quad, she sat under a tree, humming a song from the wizard band Jinxed. It was relaxing; no annoying underclassmen talking, no homework to do (yet), and no worries. This helped her meditate and she enjoyed every minute of it, dreading the schedules that Professor Flitwick would eventually hand out during breakfast.

Soon she went to the Great Hall to have breakfast. It was still relatively empty, seeing that many students were up all night catching up with old friends in their common rooms. She grabbed a bowl of oatmeal and began to eat as she read the rest of the Quibbler. The Great Hall soon began to fill with students, her peaceful morning now a little bit ruined. Putting on wrackspurts goggles again, she continued to read. Wearing them made the words jump out at you as you read them; she loved that about her father's work. After over six years of taunting in Hogwarts, she had developed selective hearing, ignoring the ridicule of her peers that would come and go. A voice, however, broke through her barrier.

"Did you want to join me for breakfast?" asked the student.

Luna thought it odd that this voice was familiar. She closed her Quibbler and looked up to see who had invited her. Dean Thomas in the flesh; she didn't realize her goggles were still on after seeing a few wrackspurts flying around his head. She took them off, admiring the real image that was there. It was weird feeling because she felt like she forgot how he looked, but later remembered how handsome he was. His hair had been trimmed, especially after how thick it looked the last time she saw him. Luna didn't take his eyes off him. It was hard to believe that he was there. "Hello…Dean."

"Hi."

"Your schedule, Miss Lovegood," Professor Flitwick set a piece of parchment next to Luna.

Without taking her eyes off Dean she said, "Thank you Professor."

"Umm," Dean said nervously. "Well did you want to sit at the Gryffindor table? I noticed you weren't sitting with anybody.

Luna could sense the eyes of her fellow Ravenclaws on her and some whispers from a few sixth year girls. They were giggling. She ignored them, "I…was actually done with breakfast." She broke her stare. Shoving her schedule into the Quibbler, she grabbed her goggles and took off walking towards the end of the table. She felt his eyes burning into her, _why am I walking away? Shouldn't I be happy to see him?_

Dean ran and cut her off before she could leave the Great Hall. Luna didn't like that they were attracting attention, now from even more students. "Luna…"

She looked into his brown eyes; those brown eyes she missed looking into, trying to read his thoughts, "How are you here?"

"What?"

"You weren't here last night. I would have seen you during the feast."

"I came in early this morning, wanted to tell you as soon as…"

"As soon as what?" she interrupted. She now realized why she wasn't springing into his arms, telling him how much she missed him. "You never sent me an owl, nothing, only when I had to send a few myself."

"I'm sorry, I meant to—"

"I sent you letters, invited you to dinner," she tried to keep her voice calm but something in her stomach was making her talk even louder. It was the weirdest feeling she felt, "I understood you were going through some changes in your life getting back with your family and finding out about your father, but I would've liked to know."

Dean's face slowly formed a frown, "I'm sorry, Luna."

Luna crossed her arms, looking down at the floor then at him, "It's fine."

They stood there in silence as the same Ravenclaw girls began to whisper and giggle to each other. "Will you at least eat breakfast with me? We can talk. Catch up."

"No thank you," Luna stepped aside, but Dean cut her off again. "Dean, I'm free to walk where I please."

"I told you I'm sorry."

"And I accept your apology! Now please let me pass."

"No."

"You are being immature," she looked around to see that many students found their little reunion interesting.

"Luna, I want to go back to the way things were, before we got separated during the battle," Dean looked into her gray eyes. "It was my fault that I left you in the dark about everything, I...ARE YOU SERIOUS?"

Dean turned to the giggling Ravenclaws. The girls stopped as soon as he raised his voice. "You've got to be kidding me, I can hear you! But to answer your questions, yes I used to date Ginny Weasley, no I'm not on a love potion and yes I actually REALLY like Luna. You can stop calling her Loony."

The girls fell silent, embarrassed that their silly gossiping had been heard. Luna tried hard not to blush, but that was something that easily happened with her fair skin, "You didn't have to do that."

"I did," he was now looking at the floor. He looked up her again and took a deep breath and said a little quietly, "I did it because well, I wanted to stick up for you. And I've wanted to tell you something for a while and I can't do it with something that distracting in my ear. Anyways, Luna…I…I love you."

Her eyes widened. Her heart was beating fast beneath her chest. She began to feel that same weird sensation in her stomach. She heard the gasps from the other students, but that didn't matter. Was this why she was a little bitter that he barely wrote to her all summer? Was this the reason? Is this what being in love feels like? She was a little annoyed that he did this in public, but she felt her insides jumping up and down. She could feel her face flushing pink, but she couldn't say anything. She wanted to say something back, but instead something happened that she didn't expect.

She flung her arms around his neck and kissed him. It was bliss again. The feeling was too good to be true. She missed his soft lips, the feeling of his hands gripping her waist and rubbing her back. She missed every bit of him, but she didn't know how to express it in words how much she missed him. The whistles came, and some cheers from the Gryffindor table erupted too. Luna broke away from the kiss, keeping her arms around him. "I love you. I spent a good part of summer being miserable, thinking about you, but now I know why."

Dean smiled, his cute dimples making Luna grin. "You don't have to say another word," he kissed her this time, forgetting that they were still in the Great Hall. They didn't care.

Professor McGonagall handed out the schedules to her students, calling on Dean several times, with no response. Dean and Luna must have been snogging for a good five minutes, until they were interrupted, "Mr. Thomas, your schedule." Professor McGonagall tapped him on the shoulder, holding out his schedule with an eyebrow raised.

"Oh," Dean finally released his grip from Luna, who was slightly embarrassed. "Sorry Professor."

"You're going to need a lot of studying this year to make up for your absence," Professor McGonagall said, now looking at Luna, "And though Miss Lovegood may be a very good study partner, if Madam Pince tells me that you're fooling around in the library I won't hesitate to take off points from my house."

"Yes Professor," he nodded as she walked away. They left the Great Hall eventually walking hand-in-hand. "About what Professor McGonagall said…"

"Study partner?"

"Mmhmm. I think it's brilliant."

"I didn't think you'd need one, you're very smart," said Luna.

"I know," Dean nodded jokingly. "But you know—"

Luna looked at him suspiciously as he smiled, "OH," she blushed then slapped him on the arm, "don't get any ideas."

THE END.


End file.
